EMBARKING ON A CINEMATIC JOURNEY: DISCOVER THE TOP BLACK MOVIES ON NETFLIX

The sheer breadth of Netflix’s collection – and the acclaimed Black Stories series in particular – provides us with a way to find and appreciate the best of hundreds of movies showcasing the best of Black culture, stories and talent, just when we’re becoming more and more eager to expand our horizons and understand the full spectrum of human experience. However, sometimes Netflix can feel like a sea with a lot of islands and very little land. So, on your behalf, we’re going to do some boating between the islands, and point out some of the best Black movies on Netflix right now.

DISCOVERING GEMS IN NETFLIX'S TROVE

Our movie marathon starts with Will Smith’s Oscar-nominated turn in the Ali biopic, Ali, a dramatic tour through the life and times of the great Muhammad Ali; and is followed by Tangerine, a near-critical darling of the indie world that’s a funny and violent experience of LA’s polyglot subcultures.

THE ODYSSEY EXPANDS: MORE FILMS TO EXPLORE

Then, there’s Shirley (2024), a Netflix film in search of viewers, and The Best of Enemies (2019), which interprets the dynamic between an integrated task force and a white segregationist during the school-desegregation movement of 1971 in North Carolina; Rustin (2023); Harriet (2019); and They Cloned Tyrone (2023), among others, which in their way dig deeper into a vision of what the Black diaspora means to us.

UNCOVERING HIDDEN TREASURES

But this cinematic journey leads us to Chris Rock: Selective Outrage (2023), Netflix’s first ever global live-streamed event, where we encounter the remarkable narrative and comedic genius of the unparalleled Rock. Movies such as Concrete Cowboy (2020) or Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (2020) reference history, culture and experience through compelling stories and performances about story and performance.

BEYOND ENTERTAINMENT: A JOURNEY OF REFLECTION AND INSPIRATION

When watching a film such as Beasts of No Nation (2015) or 13th (2016), we are taking knowledge and, having acquired a greater understanding of these subjects, the intellectual journey has already entertained, educated and challenged us. We are being invited on a journey of learning. History and meaning are being explored so we are travelling into a temporal and mental dimension that entails greater understanding.

CULTIVATING A DEEPER APPRECIATION

From The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019), Becoming (2020), Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé (2019) and more, they’d discovered the value in perseverance, the power of representation, and the beauty of artistry and activism. Every film, documentary and special became another chapter in a larger journey, and all for the greater cause of developing a broader, more textured, nuanced and multifaceted experience of Black life.

THE JOURNEY CONTINUES

But even as we take a moment to appreciate the cinematic topography of Black Stories, there is a sense that the journey is just beginning. More titles, more talents and more stories to be told, to move and to inspire, to unnerving and delightful effect.

UNDERSTANDING THE JOURNEY

Besides being a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon, digging through Netflix’s cornucopia of Black movies is also a chance to connect with and celebrate stories that are different than the ones we usually see and hear, but that nonetheless ring with familiar notes of pain, struggle, hope, humour and success. It’s a chance to see the world through a different lens, to learn about past and modern-day conditions in the Black community, to encounter and appreciate the sheer diversity of the human experience and the stories we tell about it. So let’s continue this work together. Let us seek out and watch these films with our hearts open, ready to be moved, touched, challenged and inspired.

CONCLUSION

This tour of Netflix’s Black Stories selection is a map to some of the most creative, culturally expansive and conversational films available – with fun, thought-provoking, and maybe even life-altering stops along the way – that help us better comprehend the Black moving-image experience. Our journey is that of a viewer who participates in something much bigger and illuminating than we anticipated – deepening the important critical conversations we must have as people who are willing to experience life with and through others’ eyes.