Black Mother
{{short description|2018 documentary film by Khalik Allah}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Black Mother
| image = Black_mother.jpg
| caption = Film poster
| director = Khalik Allah
| producer = Khalik Allah
Leah Giblin
| writer =
| starring =
| music = 4th Disciple
| cinematography = Khalik Allah
| editing = Khalik Allah
| distributor = Grasshopper Film
| studio = Cinereach
| released = {{film date|2018|3|1|True/False Film Festival}}
| runtime = 77 minutes
| country =
| language =
}}
Black Mother is a 2018 documentary film by American filmmaker Khalik Allah. It premiered at the 2018 True/False Film Festival in March, won a prize at The Montclair Film Festival,{{cite web|title=MFF18 Award Winners Announced|url=https://montclairfilm.org/event-archive/congrats-to-our-mff18-award-winners/|website=Montclair Film|accessdate=25 October 2020}} and was nominated for the Truer Than Fiction Award at the 35th Independent Spirit Awards.{{Cite news|url=https://www.vulture.com/2019/11/indie-spirit-awards-2020-nominations-complete-list.html|title=The Lighthouse, Uncut Gems Lead 2020 Indie Spirit Nominations
|last=Haylock|first=Zoe|date=2019-11-21|work=Vulture|access-date=2020-10-25|language=en-US}}
Black Mother was released in theaters in the US on March 8, 2019 to critical acclaim.{{Cite web|url=https://www.wildaboutmovies.com/2019_movies/black-mother/|title=Black Mother in theaters March 8, 2019 - Wild About Movies|website=Wild About Movies|accessdate=25 October 2020}}
Synopsis
Revisiting his ancestral homeland, director Khalik Allah takes his audience on a spiritual, visual, and tactile journey through Jamaica, discovering new depths and beauty in the island and those who continue to call it home.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/06/movies/black-mother-review.html|title='Black Mother' Review: Exploring the Roots of Life Itself|website=The New York Times|last=Kenny|first=Glenn|accessdate=25 October 2020|date=6 March 2019}}
Reception
=Critical reception=
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of {{RT data|score}} based on {{RT data|count}} reviews. The site's consensus reads: "A transfixing ode to geographic and familial roots, Black Mother pays poetic tribute to a place and culture from a brilliantly unique perspective."{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/black_mother|title=Black Mother|website=Rotten Tomatoes|publisher=Fandango|access-date={{RT data|access date}}}} On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 86 out of 100 based on 10 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/black-mother |title=Black Mother Reviews |work=Metacritic |publisher=CBS Interactive |accessdate=October 25, 2020}}
Citing the film as his 9th favorite movie of 2019, K. Austin Collins of Vanity Fair wrote, "The film capitalizes on what Allah does best: an audio track mismatched from the visual landscape just so, so that words and images stand alone while also together, ricocheting and complicating each other. Allah films people at home, on the street, in the midst of giving birth; he compiles it all into an energetic meditation on maternity and identity that stirs the soul."{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2019/12/top-15-movies-2019|title=The 15 Best Movies of 2019: K. Austin Collins's List|last=Collins|first=K. Austin|magazine=Vanity Fair|date=3 December 2019}}
=Awards and nominations=
| class="wikitable" | |
| Year
! Award ! Category ! Recipient ! Result | |
|---|---|
| 2020 | {{nom}} |
It won prizes at The Montclair Film Festival, The Indie Memphis Film Festival, and the Montréal Festival of New Cinema.
=Film festivals=
Black Mother was included in the lineups of film festivals including New Directors/New Films,{{Cite web|url=https://www.filmlinc.org/ndnf2018/|title = New Directors/New Films 2018}} AFI Fest,{{Cite web|url=https://www.afi.com/news/announcing-afi-fest-2018-new-auteurs-and-american-independents-lineups/|title=Announcing AFI FEST 2018 New Auteurs and American Independents Lineups}} and International Film Festival Rotterdam.{{Cite web|url=https://www.screendaily.com/news/black-mother-wins-at-7th-curacao-international-film-festival-rotterdam/5128291.article|title = 'Black Mother' wins at 7th Curacao International Film Festival Rotterdam}}
References
{{reflist}}