Confirmation
Kerry Washington plays Professor Anita Hill during the confirmation of now Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Hill brings forth an allegation of sexual harassment from Justice Thomas and Confirmation explores the media’s and Congress’s treatment of Anita Hill as she goes through the process of detailing her claims in front of the entire nation. This movie subtly brings up the topic of intersectionality, where Anita Hill is not only facing the nation with her allegations as a women, but as a black women in America against a black judge. This HBO film shows poignantly the biased approach that congress and the media take in Judge Thomas’ confirmation hearings.
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Hidden Figures
Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, and Janelle Monáe star in a movie about the forgotten story of Katherine G. Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson, three Black women who played a crucial role in the early years of the United States space program at NASA. Erased from history, this movie serves to honor their accomplishments despite the segregation and racism that they were faced with. And when put into a modern day perspective, it reveals how far we’ve come and how far we still have to go.
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Moonlight
Moonlight speaks to the struggles of an adolescent boy growing up in a broken home and a rough Miami neighborhood. It speaks to the loneliness that comes with being different and unable to stand up for oneself. This movie does a particularly good job of showing how hyper-masculinity can easily become toxic and do harm to men in the name of socializing them to act like “a man.”
(Bonus points for watching this one because Mahershala Ali.)
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Dope
Arguably one the funniest movies I’ve ever seen, Dope is about the adventures of three friends, Malcolm, Jib, and Diggy. Malcolm is a certified geek whose life changes when he and his friends go from the outcasts in their rough Los Angeles neighborhood to geeks who get invited to an underground party. But, seriously, this movie is great not only because of its entire aesthetic, but also because of how it eloquently parodies reality by holding up a mirror to it.
(Also bonus points for watching this one because Zoë Kravitz.)
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Dear White People
A stunningly humourous film, and soon to be adapted Netflix series, uses its controversial title and main character to draw people into a story that addresses racism, internalized or otherwise, and homophobia on college campuses. It brings to light the idea that racism today rarely consists of overtly offensive statements but is rather an unconscious state of mind that affects our actions. In a climate where people are more concerned about being called racists than actually working to discuss and solve racial issues, this movie isn’t just hilariously poignant, it’s also incredibly necessary.