Movies on Black Love; The Good, The Bad & The Unforgettable

Don’t have any plans for Valentine’s Day? Here are my top 10 films centering Black Love.

When it comes to depictions of Black love stories in film & tv, we are still very new to the game. Many cinephiles will point out the rise of Black romance movies came in the 1990s. In this decade, the world of cinema made way for Black Love through essential classes like Poetic Justice (1993) and The Best Man (1999). However, a few decades later, it seems that the value of Black Love in cinema constantly ebbs and flows. And we are, unfortunately, still overwhelmed with white people’s love stories in the romance genre.

The importance of diverse Black love stories in the film industry is longed for by Black viewers.

Black romance-filled content on the big screen communicates that we are people that are worthy of love and being the centre of the story. Carole V. Belle; a media, politics and identity researcher who contributed to  Jessica P. Pryde ‘s ‘Black Love Matters’ said, “A part of how we construct our identities and come to terms with our identities is seeing ourselves through the media and seeing media that we identify with. If you’re never able to find stories that you relate to in which people share aspects of your identity or sexuality, that can be problematic.”

Throughout film history, we have seen how Black cinema has contributed to how Black people are seen and treated in real life.

It is why film and images are so important as it communicates to a world that does not know us, that the universal truth of love, still applies to us. And whilst there is still progress to be made, it is still important to celebrate the Black love stories on our screen today, the good, the bad and the unforgettable.

Poetic Justice (1993)

Where To Watch: Amazon Prime Video

Cast: Janet Jackson, Tupac Shakur, Regina King, Maya Angelou

Waiting To Exhale (1995)

Where To Watch: Amazon Prime Video, Youtube, Disney+

Cast: Whitney Houston, Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine, Lela Rochon

The Best Man (1998)

Where To Watch: Amazon Prime Video, Youtube

Cast: Taye Diggs, Sanaa Lathan, Morris Chestnut, Nia Long, Terrence Howard, Regina Hall

Why Did I Get Married? (2007)

Cast: Tyler Perry, Janet Jackson, Tasha Smith, Jill Scott, Malik Yoba, Richard T. Jones

Where To Watch: Amazon Prime Video, Youtube, Netflix

Just Wright (2010)

Cast: Queen Latifah, Common, Paula Patton

Where To Watch: Youtube, Disney+

Think Like A Man (2012)

Where To Watch: Youtube, Amazon Prime Video

Cast: Kevin Hart, Michael Ealy, Regina Hall, Taraji P. Henson, Meagan Good, Gabrielle Union, Terrence J., Romany Malco, Lala Anthony, Gary Owen

If Beale Street Could Talk (2018)

Where To Watch: Youtube, Amazon Prime Video

Cast: Regina King, Stephan James, Kiki Layne, Dave Franco

Queen & Slim (2019)

Where To Watch: Youtube, Amazon Prime Video, Netflix

Cast: Daniel Kaluuya, Jodie Turner-Smith

Malcolm & Marie (2021)

Where To Watch: Netflix

Cast: Zendaya, John David Washington

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