During the COVID-19 pandemic, everyday activities have truly become luxuries. From going to concerts to having birthday parties, many of the activities that were once taken for granted are now the things many wish for. Noticeably, moviegoers have not been able to enjoy the experience of watching a film with a group inside of a crowded theater. As a result, theaters have closed and the movie experience has changed. With that said, the movie experience does not have to die. Less than a full month into the year, there are a number of blockbuster hits available from your laptop, phone and smart TV. From Regina King's One Night In Miami to Chadwick Boseman's final role in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, here are five Black movies you can watch this weekend.
Streaming On: Netflix
Starring: Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman, Colman Domingo
"Chicago, 1927. A recording session. Tensions rise between Ma Rainey, her ambitious horn player, and the white management determined to control the legendary 'Mother of the Blues'. Based on Pulitzer Prize-winner August Wilson's play," Netflix writes.
Soul
Streaming On: Disney+
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Phylicia Rashad, Questlove
"What is it that makes you...YOU? Pixar Animation Studios’ all-new feature film Soul introduces Joe Gardner – a middle-school band teacher who gets the chance of a lifetime to play at the best jazz club in town. But one small misstep takes him from the streets of New York City to The Great Before – a fantastical place where new souls get their personalities, quirks and interests before they go to Earth. Determined to return to his life, Joe teams up with a precocious soul, 22, who has never understood the appeal of the human experience. As Joe desperately tries to show 22 what’s great about living, he may just discover the answers to some of life’s most important questions," Pixar writes.
Sylvie's Love
Streaming On: Amazon Prime
Starring: Nnamdi Asomugha, Tessa Thompson, Aja Naomi King
"In Sylvie's Love, the jazz is smooth and the air sultry in the hot New York summer of 1957. Robert, a saxophonist, spends late nights playing behind a less-talented but well-known bandleader, as member of a jazz quartet. Sylvie, who dreams of a career in television, spends her summer days helping around her father’s record store, as she waits for her fiancé to return from war. When Robert takes a part-time job at the record store, the two begin a friendship that sparks a deep passion in each of them unlike anything they have felt before. As the summer winds down, life takes them in different directions, bringing their relationship to an end. Years pass, Sylvie’s career as a TV producer blossoms, while Robert has to come to terms with what the age of Motown is doing to the popularity of Jazz. In a chance meeting, Sylvie and Robert cross paths again, only to find that while their lives have changed, their feelings for each other remain the same. Writer/director Eugene Ashe combines romance and music into a sweeping story that brings together changing times, a changing culture, and the true price of love," Amazon Prime writes.
One Night In Miami
Streaming On: Amazon Prime
Starring: Leslie Odom Jr., Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree
"What happens when Cassius Clay, Malcolm X, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke find themselves in the same room?" Amazon Prime asks.
Outside The Wire
Streaming On: Netflix
Starring: Damson Idris, Anthony Mackie
"When disgraced drone pilot, Lt. Harp is sent into a deadly militarized zone after disobeying orders, he finds himself working for Capt. Leo, an android officer tasked with locating a doomsday device before insurgents do," Netflix writes.
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