X
  • 2019
  • TV-MA
  • Grasshopper Film
  • 1 h 17 m
  • 2019
  • TV-MA
  • Grasshopper Film
  • 1 h 17 m

Summary Part film, part baptism, in Black Mother director Khalik Allah brings us on a spiritual journey through Jamaica. Soaking up its bustling metropolises and tranquil countryside, Allah introduces us to a succession of vividly rendered souls who call this island home. Their candid testimonies create a polyphonic symphony, set against a visua...

Directed By: Khalik Allah

  • 2019
  • TV-MA
  • Grasshopper Film
  • 1 h 17 m
  • 2019
  • TV-MA
  • Grasshopper Film
  • 1 h 17 m

Black Mother

Metascore Universal Acclaim Based on 10 Critic Reviews
86
User Score Generally Unfavorable Based on 7 User Ratings
3.9
My Score
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Where to Watch

Summary Part film, part baptism, in Black Mother director Khalik Allah brings us on a spiritual journey through Jamaica. Soaking up its bustling metropolises and tranquil countryside, Allah introduces us to a succession of vividly rendered souls who call this island home. Their candid testimonies create a polyphonic symphony, set against a visua...

Directed By: Khalik Allah

Where to Watch

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Universal Acclaim Based on 10 Critic Reviews
86
100% Positive
10 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Universal Acclaim Based on 10 Critic Reviews
86
100% Positive
10 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
95
Mar 12, 2019
The combined effect of Black Mother’s technique—Allah shot on both 16mm and HD—is dizzying to the point of overwhelming, but the discipline required to engage with it is rewarded by a singular moviegoing experience. As the mother births her baby, so does Allah birth new cinematic grammar.
By Andrew Crump FULL REVIEW
90
May 10, 2019
An eternal nurturer, the black mother whom Allah dissects and praises in this transfixing hymn of a movie about the place where the woman that gave him life was born is far more than just a homeland but a direct link to the answers about existence.
By Carlos Aguilar FULL REVIEW
90
Mar 6, 2019
In its poetic, elliptical, concise way, this film makes a grand statement: The black mother is the mother of life itself. And the gaze directed at the black faces and bodies in “Black Mother” is not a male gaze, or a documentarian’s gaze. It is a gaze of love.
By Glenn Kenny FULL REVIEW
88
Dec 3, 2019
During much of Black Mother, the top of the next frame can be seen peeking from the bottom of the current one. The effect is a certain cinema verite bleariness, but also the suggestion that the person upon whom the camera is focused has a story that not only matters in this moment, but will go on.
By Josh Larsen FULL REVIEW
80
May 21, 2019
A beguilingly immersive, multifaceted, vividly sensorial portrait of his mother’s homeland, Jamaica.
By Jessica Kiang FULL REVIEW
75
Mar 8, 2019
In part shocking and gentle while trekking between chaotic and serene extremes, Black Mother is a fresh piece of work in both how it progresses and how it's assembled like a scrapbook of remembrances.
By Tomris Laffly FULL REVIEW
75
Mar 6, 2019
What distinguishes the film is Allah’s superb eye and talent for portraiture.
By Lawrence Garcia FULL REVIEW

User Reviews

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User Score
Generally Unfavorable Based on 7 User Ratings
3.9
43% Positive
3 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
57% Negative
4 Ratings

User Reviews

 View All
User Score
Generally Unfavorable Based on 7 User Ratings
3.9
43% Positive
3 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
57% Negative
4 Ratings

There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.

Details

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Production Company Cinereach
Release Date Mar 8, 2019
Duration 1 h 17 m
Rating TV-MA
Genres
View All Details

Awards

Montclair Film Festival (MFF)
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
Montréal Festival of New Cinema
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Indie Memphis Film Festival
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination

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