Mario Van Peebles' All-Time Favorite Films
Actor-writer-director Mario Van Peebles celebrates his newest film, Outlaw Posse with a list of his all-time favorite films. See what inspired the director and star of films like New Jack City, Posse, and more.
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- DirectorTom GriesStarsJim BrownRaquel WelchBurt ReynoldsIn 1912 Mexico, a half-Yaqui bank robber seeking to buy guns for his people is pursued by an American lawman, but the pair soon team up with a beautiful revolutionary to fight off the Army.Jim Brown and Raquel Welch are at their physical primes and deliver a hell of a performance in this classic! Of course, this interracial Western pissed a lot of people off during that time, on all sides of America's race-ocracy. For that reason alone, it’s a tasty 'should see'!
- DirectorsFernando MeirellesKátia LundStarsAlexandre RodriguesLeandro FirminoMatheus NachtergaeleIn the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.This well crafted flick about a drug gang's rise to power in the Favelas of Rio has the relentless pace of hot Samba music! If you saw it when it came out, then you know it’s worth seeing again! If you haven't seen it, what the hell are you waiting for?!
- DirectorMario Van PeeblesStarsMario Van PeeblesNia LongJoy BryantMario Van Peebles' half-documentary/half-homage to his father Melvin Van Peebles' movie Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song (1971).If you want to understand the perils of independent filmmaking and get a front row seat on our crazy family legacy, this movie does it. Against all odds Melvin Van Peebles takes on Hollywood and becomes the godfather of modern black cinema. Baadassss! is a true father-son story that is also a bit of psychotherapy on celluloid!
- DirectorJahmil X.T. QubekaStarsMothusi MaganoPetronella TshumaTshamano SebeAn introverted high school teacher in rural South Africa starts an obsessive affair with a pupil, with tragic consequences. A South African homage to film noir.This little known South African thriller sets expectations on their ear! Nothing is what it seems, so don’t bother guessing. Just enjoy the ride and the cinematography, and be glad someone told you about it!
- DirectorIvan DixonStarsLawrence CookJanet LeaguePaula KellyA black man plays 'uncle Tom' in order to gain access to CIA training, then uses that knowledge to plot a new American revolt.This subversive classic urban-thriller looks at the FBI and its indoctrination, through a whole new lens. J. Edgar Hoover's worst nightmare is a thinking agent who does more than question the status quo!
- DirectorSergio LeoneStarsClint EastwoodEli WallachLee Van CleefA bounty-hunting scam joins two men in an uneasy alliance against a third in a race to find a fortune in gold buried in a remote cemetery.This classic spaghetti Western still lives up to the hype. This is a perfect example of a director, Sergio Leone, and composer Ennio Morricone, working magic together…Much imitated and deservedly so! It's still a must see!
- DirectorMarcel CamusStarsBreno MelloMarpessa DawnLourdes de OliveiraA retelling of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth, set during the time of the Carnaval in Rio de Janeiro.This gorgeous film takes place in Rio over a couple of days during a carnival in the '50s. Romantic, incredible views and people like you've never seen. Wow!!
- DirectorMario Van PeeblesStarsMario Van PeeblesStephen BaldwinCharles LaneIn 1898 Cuba, five Buffalo Soldiers find a gold cache, desert and return to America where they help defend a black town from the KKK, all the while trying to avoid capture by lawmen and military authorities alike.Yeah, I know I directed this Western, however it’s Woody Strode's last big role and if nothing else, it's really worth hearing him set the record straight on America's favorite origin story which he does with great irony. Plus, I got to act and direct with my father, which was always a good time! Look out for all the dope cameos! Isaac Hayes, Pam Greer, Lawrence Cook, The Hudlin Brothers, Billy Zane, Big Daddy Kane, Tone Loc, Tiny Lister, Sally Richardson, Charles Lane, Blair Underwood, Steven Baldwin, AND my mentor Steven Cannell.
- DirectorRichard FleischerStarsCharlton HestonEdward G. RobinsonLeigh Taylor-YoungA nightmarish futuristic fantasy about the controlling power of big corporations and an innocent cop who stumbles on the truth.This grimy dystopian film is a snapshot of humanity’s bleak future and deals with the ultimate in ecological recycling! 'Nuff said!
- DirectorMario Van PeeblesStarsKadeem HardisonBokeem WoodbineJoe Don BakerA dramatized account of the story of The Black Panther Party of Self-Defense.This controversial film about the rise of 'The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense' in Oakland is almost (and deliberately) hard to find. This bit of omitted history provides a key perspective on how drugs are used to medicate urban communities. It also gives an overview on what the Black Panthers were about, and who the forces were that set out to destroy them.
