Black Movies to Watch in 2017

HIDDEN FIGURES

HIDDEN FIGURES is the incredible untold drama story of Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe)—brilliant African-American women working at NASA, who served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation’s confidence, turned around the Space Race, and galvanized the world. The visionary trio crossed all gender and race lines to inspire generations to dream big.

FENCES

Fences is a drama based on the screenplay by August Wilson. Troy Maxson (Denzel Washington) makes his living as a sanitation worker in 1950s Pittsburgh. Maxson once dreamed of becoming a professional baseball player, but was deemed too old when the major leagues began admitting black athletes. Bitter over his missed opportunity, Troy creates further tension in his family when he squashes his son’s (Jovan Adepo) chance to meet a college football recruiter.

A UNITED KINGDOM

A United Kingdom is a British biographical romantic drama film directed by Amma Asante and starring David Oyelowo and Rosamund Pike. The screenplay, is based on the true-life romance between Sir Seretse Khama and his wife Ruth Williams Khama. The film is based on a true story. Seretse Khama (David Oyelowo) is the Prince of Bechuanaland (now Botswana). In 1948 he meets and falls in love with London office worker Ruth Williams (Rosamund Pike). But their interracial relationship is not approved of by either of their families, nor by the British and South African governments. Seretse and Ruth must defy family, apartheid and the British empire to return from an imposed exile to their African kingdom, and assume power after independence.

THE IMMORTAL LIFE OF HENRIETTA LACKS

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is an upcoming drama television film directed by George C. Wolfe and starring Oprah Winfrey. It is based on the book of the same name by Rebecca Skloot and documents the story of Henrietta Lacks, who was diagnosed with cervical cancer in the 1950s, and whose cancer cells (later known as HeLa) would change the course of cancer treatment.