Podcast
Black on Black Cinema | Black Movie Reviews
Hosted by TNP Studios · EN
Black on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast delivering in-depth reviews of Black films — from Oscar winners to hood classics, indie gems to blockbuster hits. Hosted by four Black men from Baltimore, we bring honest opinions, genuine disagreements, and conversations that matter to the Black community. We review: Spike Lee films, Jordan Peele films, Tyler Perry films, Black horror movies, Black indie films, Black action movies, Black comedies, classic Black cinema, new Black movie releases, Black TV shows and limited series, and everything in between. Featured on RogerEbert.com. Over 570 episodes and 13 years of Black film coverage. Topics include: Black film reviews, Black movie recommendations, Black cinema history, representation in Hollywood, Black horror, Black sci-fi, Blaxploitation classics, Black rom-coms, and cultural commentary from a Black perspective. New episodes weekly. Subscribe for your next movie night pick. 🎧 Also on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and all major podcast platforms.
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Interested in sponsoring or advertising on this podcast? Contact us at ads@ossacollective.com. For programmatic ads, reach out to the Spreaker team below.
24episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Women's "Bear Versus Man" Choice Becomes Crystal Clear
Apr 2301:02:03Tap to summarizeThis week on Black on Black Cinema, the crew returns to announce the next film to be reviewed, "Love, Brooklyn." The film follows three longtime Brooklynites navigate careers, love, loss, and friendship against the rapidly changing landscape of their beloved city. The movie stars Andre Holland, Nicole Beharie, DeWanda Wise, and Roy Wood Jr. The random topic this week is an overarching conversation of rape and violence culture in regards to the CNN investigative report on a secret network on men drugging their wives and sexually abusing them and the former Lt. Governor of Virginia who murdered his wife and committed suicide.Black on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast featuring in-depth Black movie reviews and frank conversations that matter to the Black community. We review Black films across every genre — from Black horror and Black sci-fi to indie dramas, comedies, and blockbuster action. Covering filmmakers like Spike Lee, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Ava DuVernay, and more. Hosted by Jay, Micah, Terrence, and T'ara. Featured on RogerEbert.com. A TNP Studios production. New episodes weekly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and all major platforms. For more TNP Studios content, check out The Nerdpocalypse (movie & TV news), Look Forward (progressive politics), and Dense Pixels (video game news).
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Black Belt Jones (1974) | Jim Kelly's Insanely Fun Karate Flick
Apr 2001:29:52Tap to summarizeBlack on Black Cinema examines Black Belt Jones (1974), the groundbreaking Blaxploitation martial arts film that solidified Jim Kelly as an action star following his breakout role in Enter the Dragon. Directed by Oscar Williams and produced by Warner Bros during the height of the Blaxploitation era, the film stars Kelly as a martial arts instructor who battles the mob to protect his community's karate school from a crooked land deal. Co-starring Gloria Hendry as Sydney, Scatman Crothers as Pop Byrd, and featuring incredible fight choreography that showcased Kelly's karate championship skills, Black Belt Jones became a cult classic that merged kung fu cinema with Black urban action. We break down the film's cultural significance as one of the first major films to center a Black martial arts hero, analyze its approach to representing Black power and community resistance, discuss the chemistry between Kelly and Hendry, examine the fight sequences, and explore how the film fits into both Blaxploitation and martial arts cinema history. Plus: the film's influence on Black action cinema, Jim Kelly's career trajectory, and why Black Belt Jones remains essential viewing for understanding 1970s Black representation in Hollywood genre filmmaking.Black on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast featuring in-depth Black movie reviews and frank conversations that matter to the Black community. We review Black films across every genre — from Black horror and Black sci-fi to indie dramas, comedies, and blockbuster action. Covering filmmakers like Spike Lee, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Ava DuVernay, and more. Hosted by Jay, Micah, Terrence, and T'ara. Featured on RogerEbert.com. A TNP Studios production. New episodes weekly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and all major platforms. For more TNP Studios content, check out The Nerdpocalypse (movie & TV news), Look Forward (progressive politics), and Dense Pixels (video game news).
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Zohran Mamdani's Wife Said the N-Word...at Age 15
Mar 2600:31:08Tap to summarizeThis week on Black on Black Cinema, the crew returns to announce the next film, "Black Belt Jones." The 1974 blaxploitation classic starring Jim Kelly, which follows the Mafia buy out of Papa Byrd's karate school downtown that ends in his death. Byrd's daughter, Sydney, refuses to sell, and wants revenge. Byrd's students call the Black Belt Jones for help. Jones reluctantly teams with Sydney in many battles. The random topic this week is about the discovery that the wife of the Mayor of New York City, Rama Duwaji, said the N-word in a tweet back when she was 15. We have a conversation on the severity of this discovery and the weirdness of certain rules and lines on the use of the word by people outside of the community.Black on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast featuring in-depth Black movie reviews and frank conversations that matter to the Black community. We review Black films across every genre — from Black horror and Black sci-fi to indie dramas, comedies, and blockbuster action. Covering filmmakers like Spike Lee, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Ava DuVernay, and more. Hosted by Jay, Micah, Terrence, and T'ara. Featured on RogerEbert.com. A TNP Studios production. New episodes weekly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and all major platforms. For more TNP Studios content, check out The Nerdpocalypse (movie & TV news), Look Forward (progressive politics), and Dense Pixels (video game news).
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Devil in a Blue Dress — Denzel's Neo-Noir Film & The Franchise That Never Was
Mar 2001:22:38Tap to summarizeDevil in a Blue Dress (1995): Denzel Washington's most underrated performance. Directed by Carl Franklin, based on Walter Mosley's novel. Easy Rawlins, a Black WWII veteran in 1948 Los Angeles, takes a job finding a missing white woman. Simple task becomes a labyrinth of violence, corruption, and impossible choices. This week on Black on Black Cinema, we look back on one of Denzel's lesser known classics.This should have launched a franchise. Walter Mosley wrote 14 Easy Rawlins books. Denzel was perfect in the role. Don Cheadle's Mouse was a scene stealer. Carl Franklin's direction was a excellent visual take on the times and brought the book to life.Why it matters: Denzel plays Easy as morally complex—not hero, not villain, just a Black man trying to survive. Don Cheadle's breakout as Mouse (chaotic, violent, loyal). Carl Franklin directs through the Black gaze. 1948 LA shown as a minefield for Black veterans. Themes: survival in immoral systems, respectability politics, racial passing.This is a forgotten masterpiece. We break down why Devil in a Blue Dress deserves reconsideration.New episodes every other week.Subscribe: Spreaker, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube#DevilInABlueDress #DenzelWashingtonBlack on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast featuring in-depth Black movie reviews and frank conversations that matter to the Black community. We review Black films across every genre — from Black horror and Black sci-fi to indie dramas, comedies, and blockbuster action. Covering filmmakers like Spike Lee, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Ava DuVernay, and more. Hosted by Jay, Micah, Terrence, and T'ara. Featured on RogerEbert.com. A TNP Studios production. New episodes weekly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and all major platforms. For more TNP Studios content, check out The Nerdpocalypse (movie & TV news), Look Forward (progressive politics), and Dense Pixels (video game news).
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Living Through Moral Collapse (Iran War)
Mar 1200:43:03Tap to summarizeNext week on Black on Black Cinema, we're reviewing Devil in a Blue Dress (1995), starring Denzel Washington in one of his most underrated performances. This Carl Franklin neo-noir follows Easy Rawlins navigating 1940s Los Angeles—a Black veteran trying to survive in a world designed to destroy him.But first, we need to talk about something: watching the Iran war unfold from inside the United States feels surreal. We're living through what might be the moral collapse of American foreign policy in real time, and the cognitive dissonance is overwhelming. How do you review films about justice and survival when your country is manufacturing catastrophe overseas?🎬 DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS (1995)Director: Carl FranklinStarring: Denzel Washington, Don Cheadle, Jennifer Beals, Tom SizemoreGenre: Neo-noir, Crime ThrillerSetting: 1948 Los Angeles (post-WWII Black LA)Based on Walter Mosley's novel, this is one of the most overlooked films in Denzel's career—a meditation on Black survival, American racism, and the violence lurking beneath respectability politics.© 2026 TNP Studios / Black on Black CinemaBlack on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast featuring in-depth Black movie reviews and frank conversations that matter to the Black community. We review Black films across every genre — from Black horror and Black sci-fi to indie dramas, comedies, and blockbuster action. Covering filmmakers like Spike Lee, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Ava DuVernay, and more. Hosted by Jay, Micah, Terrence, and T'ara. Featured on RogerEbert.com. A TNP Studios production. New episodes weekly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and all major platforms. For more TNP Studios content, check out The Nerdpocalypse (movie & TV news), Look Forward (progressive politics), and Dense Pixels (video game news).
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Soul Men (2008) | Bernie Mac's Final Performance & Samuel L. Jackson's Roadtrip Comedy
Mar 501:19:52Tap to summarizeThis week on Black on Black Cinema, the crew returns to review Soul Men (2008) which was released just two months after Bernie Mac's death, making it a bittersweet farewell to one of comedy's greatest talents. Directed by Malcolm D. Lee and starring Samuel L. Jackson alongside Mac, this road trip musical comedy follows two estranged backup singers reuniting for a tribute concert after their lead singer dies.Black on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast featuring in-depth Black movie reviews and frank conversations that matter to the Black community. We review Black films across every genre — from Black horror and Black sci-fi to indie dramas, comedies, and blockbuster action. Covering filmmakers like Spike Lee, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Ava DuVernay, and more. Hosted by Jay, Micah, Terrence, and T'ara. Featured on RogerEbert.com. A TNP Studios production. New episodes weekly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and all major platforms. For more TNP Studios content, check out The Nerdpocalypse (movie & TV news), Look Forward (progressive politics), and Dense Pixels (video game news).
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The BAFTA Incident — Disability, Race & Media Responsibility
Feb 2600:37:02Tap to summarizeThis week on Black on Black Cinema, the crew returns to introduce the next film to the reviewed, "Soul Men." The 2008 film follows two estranged soul-singing legends who agree to participate in a reunion performance at the Apollo Theater to honor their recently deceased band leader. The movie stars Samuel L. Jackson and the late great Bernie Mac. Available to stream for free on Tubi.The random topic this week we tackle the complex and difficult incident that unfolded at the 2026 BAFTA Film Awards when John Davidson, a Tourette's syndrome activist and subject of the nominated film "I Swear," involuntarily shouted racial slurs—including the N-word—while Black actors Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo presented an award.This isn't a simple story. It's a collision of disability rights, anti-Black racism, media responsibility, and institutional failure.What happened: Davidson, who has spent decades advocating for Tourette's awareness, experienced involuntary vocal tics throughout the ceremony. His condition causes coprolalia—the uncontrollable utterance of socially inappropriate words. When Jordan and Lindo took the stage, Davidson's tic produced the N-word, audible throughout the venue.The BBC's failure: Despite broadcasting on a two-hour delay (giving them time to edit), the BBC left the slur in the broadcast AND on iPlayer for 15+ hours. Yet they DID edit out other content, including a "Free Palestine" statement and political jokes. The selective editing reveals a catastrophic failure/purposeful behavior in judgment and priorities.The complications: This incident sits at the painful intersection of two marginalized communities. Davidson has no control over his tics—they represent the opposite of his actual beliefs. Yet Black attendees, including production designer Hannah Beachler, experienced real racial trauma. Lindo told Vanity Fair he wished BAFTA had spoken to them afterward. Host Alan Cumming's apology said "sorry if you were offended" was woefully inadequate.Why this matters for cinema: The film "I Swear" was nominated for multiple BAFTAs and won three awards, including Best Actor for Robert Aramayo's portrayal of Davidson. The movie exists to educate about Tourette's. Yet BAFTA and the BBC failed both the disability community AND the Black community in how they handled this moment.We discuss:- The impossible position both communities were put in due to the BBC's actions or lack thereof- Why institutional preparation and response failed catastrophically- The difference between individual accountability and systemic responsibility- How ableism and anti-Black racism played out in the aftermath (including the idea of "he meant that shit" comments)- What should have happened vs. what did happen- The broader conversation about representation, disability, and whose comfort gets prioritizedThis is a conversation about nuance, compassion, and holding institutions accountable when they fail vulnerable communities.Full Black on Black Cinema episodes coming soon. Subscribe so you don't miss our deep dives into Black cinema, representation, and the stories Hollywood tells—and doesn't tellBlack on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast featuring in-depth Black movie reviews and frank conversations that matter to the Black community. We review Black films across every genre — from Black horror and Black sci-fi to indie dramas, comedies, and blockbuster action. Covering filmmakers like Spike Lee, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Ava DuVernay, and more. Hosted by Jay, Micah, Terrence, and T'ara. Featured on RogerEbert.com. A TNP Studios production. New episodes weekly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and all major platforms. For more TNP Studios content, check out The Nerdpocalypse (movie & TV news), Look Forward (progressive politics), and Dense Pixels (video game news).
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The Dutchman (2025) | Amiri Baraka's Explosive Racial Confrontation
Feb 1901:38:19Tap to summarizeThis week on Black on Black Cinema, the crew returns to discuss the 2025 psychological thriller, "The Dutchman." Based on Amiri Baraka's groundbreaking 1964 Obie Award-winning one-act play, the film follows Clay (André Holland), a successful but troubled Black businessman navigating a crumbling marriage with his wife Kaya (Zazie Beetz). After a therapy session with the enigmatic Dr. Amiri (Stephen McKinley Henderson), Clay encounters Lula (Kate Mara), a seductive and sinister white woman on a New York subway, who draws him into a dangerous psychological game of cat and mouse that forces him to confront his identity, his marriage, and the concept of double consciousness. Directed by Andre Gaines and co-written with Qasim Basir, the film also stars Aldis Hodge and Lauren E. Banks. The crew digs into the film's exploration of race, assimilation, Black male identity, and whether this modern adaptation does justice to Baraka's original text — or if the meta-theatrical approach gets in its own way.Black on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast featuring in-depth Black movie reviews and frank conversations that matter to the Black community. We review Black films across every genre — from Black horror and Black sci-fi to indie dramas, comedies, and blockbuster action. Covering filmmakers like Spike Lee, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Ava DuVernay, and more. Hosted by Jay, Micah, Terrence, and T'ara. Featured on RogerEbert.com. A TNP Studios production. New episodes weekly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and all major platforms. For more TNP Studios content, check out The Nerdpocalypse (movie & TV news), Look Forward (progressive politics), and Dense Pixels (video game news).
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Bad Bunny vs Turning Point USA: Who Owns the Culture?
Feb 1300:52:13Tap to summarizeThis week on Black on Black Cinema, the crew returns to announce the next film, 2025's "The Dutchman." The film follows a successful black businessman, haunted by his crumbling marriage and identity crisis, who is drawn into a sexualized game of cat and mouse with a mysterious white woman on a subway that leads to a violent conclusion. Starring Andre Holland, Kate Mara, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and Zazie Beats. The random topic this week is on our thoughts of the battle for the Super Bowl halftime shows: Bad Bunny vs cadre of washed up white conservative musicians in their Turning Point USA safe space. A conversation on what and more importantly who has and continues to define American culture.Black on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast featuring in-depth Black movie reviews and frank conversations that matter to the Black community. We review Black films across every genre — from Black horror and Black sci-fi to indie dramas, comedies, and blockbuster action. Covering filmmakers like Spike Lee, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Ava DuVernay, and more. Hosted by Jay, Micah, Terrence, and T'ara. Featured on RogerEbert.com. A TNP Studios production. New episodes weekly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and all major platforms. For more TNP Studios content, check out The Nerdpocalypse (movie & TV news), Look Forward (progressive politics), and Dense Pixels (video game news).
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She's Gotta Have It (REVIEW): Unapologetic Feminine Sexuality | Ep293
Feb 501:42:02Tap to summarizeThis week on Black on Black Cinema, the crew returns to review Spike Lee's 1986 directorial debut "She's Gotta Have It." The film follows Nola Darling, a woman who openly dates three men who are aware of one another and possess three wildy different personalities.Black on Black Cinema is a long-running podcast featuring in-depth Black movie reviews and frank conversations that matter to the Black community. We review Black films across every genre — from Black horror and Black sci-fi to indie dramas, comedies, and blockbuster action. Covering filmmakers like Spike Lee, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Ava DuVernay, and more. Hosted by Jay, Micah, Terrence, and T'ara. Featured on RogerEbert.com. A TNP Studios production. New episodes weekly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and all major platforms. For more TNP Studios content, check out The Nerdpocalypse (movie & TV news), Look Forward (progressive politics), and Dense Pixels (video game news).
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