I’m as lily white as they come, oh boy!
The Gist
Released on a bi-weekly basis, Black on Black Cinema has been putting out episodes since late 2012. The hosts of the podcast are Jay, Micah, Terrence, and Rob. Each episode usually chimes in at around two hours. The premise of the podcast is a group of black gentlemen discussing a single movie with ties to black cinema. That could mean a movie about black history, a movie with a predominantly black cast, or a movie by a black filmmaker.
Episodes Listened To
#29: Baby Boy
#30: Newlyweeds
#31: Hollywood Shuffle
My Thoughts
Am I the target audience for Black on Black Cinema? I’m not sure if I am or I’m not, but I ended up enjoying the podcast a lot. The hosts do ramble a lot, but I quickly found myself drawn into their rambling style. They go off on lots of tangents, but I found each and every tangent to be a lot of fun. The hosts very clearly have a lot of fun talking to one another and that shines through in every episode they release. I had fun listening to the hosts of Black on Black Cinema talk to one another, and that always makes a podcast better.
The area where Black on Black Cinema is unique is in the perspective they bring to the films they discuss. I’m not black, neither are the majority of cinephiles and critics who I know and interact with. There are some, but not an overwhelming majority, and it’s refreshing to get a different perspective on black culture in the movies. A movie like Baby Boy is a great example. Almost every critic I read gave it glowing reviews. They all had one thing in common, there were very white. Jay, Micah, Terrence, and Rob approached Baby Boy from a perspective I couldn’t share, and I appreciated their insight. They trashed a film that most white critics lauded, and I found their take to be valuable.
I’m looking forward to hearing what the boys on Black on Black Cinema have to say about lots of films. I want to add their perspective to my feelings on 12 Years a Slave. I’d like to know their reaction to the work of Lee Daniels. Basically, I want to hear what Black on Black Cinema has to say about the greater world of black cinema. At the end of the day the fact that the hosts of Black on Black Cinema are four black gentlemen doesn’t matter as much as the fact that they present quality discussions on their podcast. My vote is to subscribe to Black on Black Cinema. The podcast offers a fresh perspective, engaging conversations, and fun times; just what I like a in my film related podcasts.
The Bottom Line
Subscribe
Cheers,
Bill Thompson
Bill's Movie Emporium 
This is one I’ll definitely start checking out, I listened to the first half of one of their older episodes on Glory as it was one of the movies I was most familiar with, but they do have some good chemistry and I’ll be checking out more from them. Nice recommendation.
Sounds good, hope you enjoy it because I do feel they fill a niche in the film community that is lacking.
This sounds like a podcast that I should probably give a listen. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
No problem, hope you like it. 🙂
Just started listening to a few of these episodes. Thanks for covering this.
No problem, glad you liked it. 🙂