Curator David DMP Moore’s Black U.S. Cinema film series, which Babylon is showing this week and next (until 17.05.2023), offers an impressive selection of Black cinema. The program is packed with talent (both on-screen and behind camera) and illuminates Black American history through real-life and fictional heroes. You can jump right in tonight (11.05.2023) with the touching documentary “I Am Not Your Negro” from Raoul Peck (2017). The basis of this cinematic collage is the unfinished manuscript “Remember this House” by U.S. writer James Baldwin (1924-87), who describes white racism in American society and the situation of people of color in the United States. Meanwhile, “Boyz n the Hood” (1991) from John Singleton heads up tomorrow’s program (12.05.2023). The film is set in the notorious South Central district of Los Angeles and follows the story of three young people as they contend with gangs, drugs and violence. Rapper Ice Cube is just one of the figures to feature in the film. The selection also takes us back to 1958 with “Escape in Chains” (14.05) which tells the story of Noah (Sidney Portier) and Joker (Tony Curtis) who overcome racial prejudice while on the run. Finally, Spike Lee’s “BlackkKlansman” (2018) is based on a true story: Ron Stallworth (John David Washington), a detective, embarks on a mission to infiltrate a chapter of the Ku Klux Klan in 1970s Colorado Springs. With a packed line-up, the series is a chance to see important films that simply must be seen.
Text: Nike Wilhelms / Stills: I Am Not Your Negro, Boyz n the Hood & BlackkKlansman
“Black US Cinema” at Babylon, Rosa-Luxemburg-Str.30, 10178 Berlin–Mitte; map
@babylonberlin
