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 31 wins & 49 nominations.

Cast

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

The most important civil rights documentary of our time.

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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

Did You Know?

Trivia

The word "negro" is used 78 times in the film.

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Quotes

James Baldwin: It is not a racial problem. It's a problem of whether or not you're willing to look at your life and be responsible for it, and then begin to change it. That great western house I come from is one house, and I am one of the children of that house. Simply, I am the most despised child of that house. And it is because the American people are unable to face the fact that I am flesh of their flesh, bone of their bone, created by them. My blood, my father's blood, is in that soil.

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Connections

Features They Won't Forget (1937)

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Soundtracks

Black, Brown and White
Written by Big Bill Broonzy (as Big Bill (Williams) Broonzy)
Performed by Big Bill Broonzy (1946)
From the recording "Trouble in Mind", SFW40131
Courtesy of Smithsonian Folkways Recordings. (p) 2000.

User Reviews

history is not the past, it is the present

There is so much to say about this film, too much that i cannot seem to wrap my head around it.

the images, the lines, the archival material, everything makes sense, how painful that may be. it has been an honour to see Baldwin talk, to notice his beautiful phrases and his loving and strong personality.

His words make this documentary another experience, it allows for admitting of mistakes and failures. it stops denial, he hands us the realisation that this issue does not go beyond us, it defines us.

'we carry our past everywhere we go' 'not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced'

#blacklivesmatter

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