SummaryLangston, a street-wise teen from Baltimore raised by a single mother, travels to New York City to spend the Christmas holiday with his estranged relatives Reverend Cornell and Aretha Cobbs. Unwilling to live by the imposing Reverend Cobbs' rules, a frustrated Langston is determined to return home to his mother, Naima. Langston embarks on a surpr... Read More
Directed By:Kasi Lemmons
Written By:Langston Hughes, Kasi Lemmons
Black Nativity
Metascore
Mixed or Average
48
User score
Mixed or Average
4.9
My Score
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Top Cast
Metascore
Mixed or Average
28% Positive
8 Reviews
8 Reviews
59% Mixed
17 Reviews
17 Reviews
14% Negative
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
Nov 26, 2013
75
Lemmons and her cast, aided by some great music, have created an interlude sure to lift the spirit during the holiday season.
Nov 26, 2013
63
Anchored by a topnotch ensemble cast, it's toe-tapping holiday fare that's also a potent reminder that family resentments and hardened hearts serve no one.
User score
Mixed or Average
36% Positive
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
27% Mixed
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
36% Negative
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
Nov 27, 2013
7
That sentiment pretty much sums up Black Nativity: ungainly in execution, yet still infused with enough passion and reverence for Hughes’ original work to be more success than failure. Moviegoers looking for seasonal entertainment that is accessible and family-friendly (without also being treacly and/or bland) this is a Christmas show that you might want to check out.
May 1, 2021
6
I was, for the most part, feeling pleasant enough about this... until that ending. It's not that 'Black Nativity' ends badly, it's just so incredibly forced and cringeworthy. It's a Christmas film so I guess I could cut it some slack, but I feel it could've concluded things much better. Some of the character decisions felt odd at times, also. One of the reasons as to why I was actually finding this satisfactory throughout is the cast - loads of recognisable and likeable faces. Forest Whitaker (Cornell) is honestly great, his performance is the only one I'd class as anything over 'good'. Jacob Latimore (Langston) and Angela Bassett (Aretha) are the best of the rest, though I always like watching 'Fast & Furious' star Tyrese Gibson act too. All in all, nothing positive or negative... just average.
Nov 27, 2013
60
While Black Nativity often lacks polish and restraint, at least it never lacks for soul.
Nov 25, 2013
60
Lemmons advances this story with straight-faced conviction, orchestrating narrative and spectacle with a grandiosity that proves easier to admire from a distance than it is to engage with onscreen.
Nov 26, 2013
50
This holiday extravaganza with an all-star cast has a lot of failings. But it seems likely to tap into the audience’s enthusiasm for uplifting entertainment.
Nov 26, 2013
40
Many of the transitions between narrative and music are rough. The temptations of the street, all too real in the real world, feel forced. Confrontations become clichés. The substance of human motivation is missing. And thus the heart never beats as it should.
Dec 5, 2013
20
It’s a misguided enterprise all round, and while it’s perfectly possible to applaud everything the film wants to say, you find yourself cringing at the ways it’s saying it.
Dec 9, 2013
3
This was low B grade movie. There were stellar performances from Vondie Curtis Hall, Tyrese Gibson, Luke James, Grace Gibson and Mary J. Blige. Otherwise the sentimentality at times became so cloying and contrived. Jennifer Hudson made merely cameo appearances in the movie and howled violently through all her singing lines. Some guys down in the front row began to openly mock her which caused other movie goers to let out a few chuckles they had been holding in. The kids I took with me were enjoying it so I stayed for the whole movie but wanted to leave. I was curious how they would weave Langston Hughes's Black Nativity story into the movie itself but it was barely spoken about except for a brief showing mid movie. Overall I got the impression that this movie was merely a vehicle for Jacob Latimore who sang his parts very well. I found it hard to empathise with his character though. I kept hoping that he'd get caught, shot or arrested so that we could finally get past his dredged up problems to the Nativity.
Production Company:
- Bob Industries
- Maven Pictures
Release Date:Nov 27, 2013
Duration:1 h 33 m
Rating:PG
Awards
Acapulco Black Film Festival
• 3 Nominations
Image Awards (NAACP)
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
African-American Film Critics Association (AAFCA)
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
