Female Film Critics 24/375
World Channel held a screening of Two Dollars and a Dream: The Story of Madame C.J. Walker. It is a documentary on the life of Madame C. J Walker by Stanley Nelson. A conversation with filmmaker Stanley Nelson and author A’leia Bundles was held before the screening.
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A’Leila Bundles compares the dramatization of her great great grandmother’s life in Self Made with the story revealed in the 1989 documentary Two Dollars and A Dream, and speaks to her family’s legacy of philanthropy and of caring for the the Walker Company’s employees, most of whom were independent Black women.
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Mr. Jones is a timely film that focuses on a topic that we find ourselves once again grappling with: Truth in journalism. As our country is fighting for Democracy, accountability and truth, we too often find ourselves struggling to answer the question ‘how did we get here, to this troubled time in our history?’ Mr. Jones answers this question beautifully — but looking back to another troubled time in history when the subject in focus is the Soviet Union and the historic event is the Ukraine famine of 1932-33.
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Sundance Film Festival featured many films directed by black women. Each film had a different theme and inspiration. Each of the filmmakers had a different point of entry into filmmaking. Some went to film school others went out on a whim, but each brought a strong personal vision and compelling story to the screen, showing that the black experience is not monolithic, but very global. That’s the beauty of filmmaking.
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Speaking from her Gen X perspective, Kathia Woods recalls her first encounter — at age seven — with the Star Wars franchise and what the film meant to her and to her friends, all of whom were completely mesmerized by the story, the characters and the other world in which the saga unfolded. She invites discussion about Star Wars inspiration and its impact, and feelings about the franchise coming to an end.
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Garnering critical acclaim and awards buzz since its premiere at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival, The Last Black Man in San Francisco focuses on several pressing social and cultural issues having to do with family relationships, neighborhood gentrification and what we want, need and expect in our lives. Tichina Arnold’s character, Auntie Wanda Fails, is pivotal to the plot and the discussion of issues. She speaks candidly with Kathia Woods about the film and her role in it.
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