We Blaxplain Blaxplaining

Still Processing

This week, we trace the evolution of black American cinema from blaxploitation in the 1970s to what we’re calling "blaxplaining" in 2018. While blaxploitation sought to showcase black actors in dramatic, action-packed films, today’s blaxplaining centers on the challenges of being black in America. We examine three films — "The Hate U Give," "Blindspotting" and "Sorry to Bother You" — and ask if they accurately depict aspects of contemporary black life, or instead merely seek to make some black experiences more palatable to white audiences.

Discussed this week:

• "The Hate U Give" (directed by George Tillman Jr., 2018)
• "Blindspotting" (directed by Carlos López Estrada, 2018)
• "Sorry to Bother You" (directed by Boots Riley, 2018)
• "Coffy" (directed by Jack Hill, 1973)
• "Slaves" (directed by Herbert Biberman, 1969)
• "Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song" (directed by Melvin Van Peebles, 1971)
• "The Devil Finds Work" (by James Baldwin, 1976)
• "Lady Sings the Blues" (directed by Sidney J. Furie, 1972)
• "Mandingo" (directed by Richard Fleischer, 1975)
• "Jaws" (directed by Steven Spielberg, 1975)
• "Hammer" (directed by Bruce Clark, 1972)
• "Truck Turner" (directed by Jonathan Kaplan, 1974)
• "Shaft" (directed by Gordon Parks, 1971)
• "Blacula" (directed by William Crain, 1972)
• "Proud Mary" (directed by Babak Najafi, 2018)
• "The Equalizer 2" (directed by Antoine Fuqua, 2018)
• "White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism" (Robin DiAngelo, Beacon Press, 2018)
• "Super Fly" (directed by Gordon Parks Jr., 1972)
• "Dr. Black, Mr. Hyde" (Directed by William Crain, 1976)
• "Cotton Comes to Harlem" (Directed by Ossie Davis, 1970)
• "Mahogany" (Directed by Berry Gordy, 1975)
• "Dancing in the Moonlight" (Still Processing, 2016)