I Am Not Your Negro (2016)

Writer James Baldwin tells the story of race in modern America with his unfinished novel, Remember This House.

Director:

Raoul Peck

Writers:

James Baldwin (writings), Raoul Peck (scenario)

Stars:

Samuel L. Jackson, James Baldwin, Martin Luther King

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 30 wins & 48 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Samuel L. Jackson	...	Narration (voice)
James Baldwin	...	Himself (archive footage)
Martin Luther King	...	Himself (archive footage)
Malcolm X	...	Himself (archive footage)
Medgar Evers	...	Himself (archive footage)
Robert F. Kennedy	...	Himself (archive footage)
Harry Belafonte	...	Himself (archive footage)
Paul Weiss	...	Himself (archive footage)
Dick Cavett	...	Himself (archive footage)
H. Rap Brown	...	Himself - Black Panther Party (archive footage)
Bob Dylan	...	Himself (archive footage)
Leander Perez	...	Himself - White Citizens Council (archive footage)
Sidney Poitier	...	Various Roles (archive footage)
Ray Charles	...	Himself (archive footage)
Doris Day	...	Various Roles (archive footage)

Storyline

In 1979, James Baldwin wrote a letter to his literary agent describing his next project, "Remember This House." The book was to be a revolutionary, personal account of the lives and assassinations of three of his close friends: Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. At the time of Baldwin's death in 1987, he left behind only 30 completed pages of this manuscript. Filmmaker Raoul Peck envisions the book James Baldwin never finished.

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Plot Keywords:

malcolm x | police brutality | african american | racism | archive footage | 

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Taglines:

In "Remember This House" Raoul Peck envisions the book James Baldwin never finished -a radical narration about race in America, through the lives and assassinations of three of his friends: Martin Luther King Jr., Medgar Evers and Malcolm X. using only the writer's original words.

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Genres:

Documentary

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for disturbing violent images, thematic material, language and brief nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Facebook Instagram

Country:

Switzerland France Belgium USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

17 February 2017 (USA)

Also Known As:

Remember This House

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$686,378, 5 February 2017

Gross USA:

$7,123,919

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$8,345,298

Company Credits

Production Co:

ARTE, Independent Lens, RTBF (Télévision belge)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was deemed Best Documentary by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, took home the People's Choice Award from the Toronto International Film Festival and won a creative recognition award from the International Documentary Association, to name a few.

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Quotes

James Baldwin: To watch the TV screen for any length of time is to learn some really frightening things about the American sense of reality. We are cruelly trapped between what we would like to be and what we actually are. And we cannot possibly become what we would like to be until we are willing to ask ourselves just why the lives we lead on this continent are mainly so empty, so tame, and so ugly. These images are designed not to trouble, but to reassure. They also weaken our ability to deal with the world...

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Connections

Features Love in the Afternoon (1957)

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Soundtracks

The Ballad of Birmingham
Written by Jerry Moore, Dudley Randall
© Melody Trails
Performed by the Tennessee State University Students (2006)
Music and Arrangement by Bransen Edwards
Piano by Steve Conn
Vocals by Santayana Harris & Kameka Word
Courtesy of Dr. Robert R. Bradley

User Reviews

A Vital, Poetic and Groundbreaking Film

There are many films which don't live up to their promise. This isn't one of them. Over the past few years, there has been a renewed interest in the breadth and scope of James Badlwin's incredible work. A complicated public figure from the 50s through the 80s, Baldwin's writings especially unraveled the narrative of a sameness within the Civil Rights era. He was a black gay man who felt passionately about the Civil Rights movement and who served as a major intellectual voice. In this film, Baldwin's work--which you get the sense the world wasn't yet ready for back when he was alive- - is forthright, intricate, rich with humanity and compelling in its case for inclusiveness, equality and for America to not become a hypocrite in its love for liberty. It is undeniable that the public conversation on race in America has once again resurfaced as a crisis. In every dimension of public life, we see and hear complaints of injustice, and we also witness the pushback. The purpose of this film-- as evidenced by its tapestry of older and contemporary clips alongside each other-- is to give new eyes and ears to the Baldwin asked us to see the world. It is a beautiful, touching and politically critical piece of work, and one that is long overdue for such a brilliant mind.

I am well aware of how divisive conversations about race have become in the last 2 years. I suspect that much of the negative views voiced about this film are from people who are not willing to even watch it and who have decided that to shut their minds out from its message, or to even be challenged by a work of art. It's a disgrace that large swaths of people are trying to bring down the user reviews of this film by giving it only one star. It speaks of their gross immaturity and barbarism. If anything, everyone should watch this film. Not just judge it. But watch it.