James Baldwin On-Screen

James Baldwin On-Screen

5 Episodes

Towering literary lion, fierce social critic, and inimitable cultural icon James Baldwin opened up a new space for the frank discussion of race, sexuality, and identity in American society. He also left behind a dynamic cinematic legacy, as seen in these portraits that capture his electrifying presence, passionate eloquence, and incisive commentary on everything from art to religion to love to liberation to his most personal experiences as a gay Black man who lived much of his life abroad but who never stopped examining his own complex relationship to the United States. This collection also includes GO TELL IT ON THE MOUNTAIN, a star-studded television film based on Baldwin’s first novel, one of the few screen adaptations of his fiction.

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James Baldwin On-Screen

5 Episodes

  • Go Tell It on the Mountain
    1:37:31
    Go Tell It on the Mountain
    Episode 1

    Go Tell It on the Mountain

    Episode 1

    Directed by Stan Lathan • 1985 • United States
    Starring Paul Winfield, James Bond III, Olivia Cole

    This soul-shaking adaptation of James Baldwin’s acclaimed, semiautobiographical novel unfolds through the eyes of John Grimes (James Bond III), a Black teenager growing up in 1930s Harlem whose exp...

  • James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket
    1:26:54
    James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket
    Episode 2

    James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket

    Episode 2

    Directed by Karen Thorsen • 1989 • United States
    Starring James Baldwin, Maya Angelou, Amiri Baraka

    An emotional portrait, a social critique, and a passionate plea for human equality, JAMES BALDWIN: THE PRICE OF THE TICKET eschews narration to allow the monumentally influential writer and activi...

  • Baldwin’s Nigger
    45:52
    Baldwin’s Nigger
    Episode 3

    Baldwin’s Nigger

    Episode 3

    Directed by Horace Ové • 1968 • United Kingdom
    Starring James Baldwin, Dick Gregory

    In this riveting short documentary by pioneering Trinidadian-British filmmaker Horace Ové, James Baldwin and comedian-activist Dick Gregory speak to a group of radical West Indian students in London about everyth...

  • Meeting the Man: James Baldwin in Paris
    27:16
    Meeting the Man: James Baldwin in Paris
    Episode 4

    Meeting the Man: James Baldwin in Paris

    Episode 4

    Directed by Terence Dixon • 1970 • France, United Kingdom
    Starring James Baldwin, Terence Dixon

    In 1970, a British film crew set out to make a straightforward literary portrait of James Baldwin set in Paris, insisting on setting aside his political activism. Baldwin bristled at their questions, ...

  • James Baldwin: From Another Place
    12:03
    James Baldwin: From Another Place
    Episode 5

    James Baldwin: From Another Place

    Episode 5

    Directed by Sedat Pakay • 1973 • Turkey
    Starring James Baldwin

    Strikingly shot on the streets of Istanbul, this portrait of the writer and thinker finds him discussing his work, sexuality, and complex feelings about the United States.

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