Ngozi Onwurah
Filmmaker
UK/Nigeria
Voted for
| Film | Year | Director |
|---|---|---|
| Moonlight | 2016 | Barry Jenkins |
| The Burial of Kojo | 2018 | Sam Blitz Bazawule |
| Taxi Driver | 1976 | Martin Scorsese |
| Daughters of the Dust | 1991 | Julie Dash |
| Apocalypse Now | 1979 | Francis Ford Coppola |
| The Lunch box | 2013 | Ritesh Batra |
| Do the Right Thing | 1989 | Spike Lee |
| Black Panther | 2018 | Ryan Coogler |
| La Nuit des rois | 2020 | Philippe Lacôte |
| I Am Not a Witch | 2017 | Rungano Nyoni |
Comments
Moonlight
The perfect film, intimate and universal. I went to watch it in the cinema three times in 10 days. Now I treat it like a favourite album, playing all or bits of it when my mood needs it.
The Burial of Kojo
Like Moonlight, Burial Of Kojo is beautiful, magical filmaking. A bold cinematic poem with a strong narrative and characters you care deeply about.
Taxi Driver
For the longest time Martin Scorsese could do no wrong. Some of his shine has rubbed off over time but Taxi Driver is as brilliant as ever. This the the film that made me into a movie lover.
Daughters of the Dust
Poetic, delicate and powerful. Transports the viewer and the ancestors to another place and time.
Apocalypse Now
Not much left to say that hasn’t already been said about this film, An iconic masterpiece with images and dialogue that will haunt you forever.
The Lunch box
A delightful gem of a film. I took my 10-year-old son to see it when it first came out. Despite having to deal with subtitles, he loved it. So, a few days later, I bought a tiffin lunch box from the local Indian store and hid a love note amongst the food. I took it to his school and asked a member of staff to put it on his desk at lunch time, to imitate Mumbai’s lunch delivery service. My son was so happy. He wrote me a note to find when I was cleaning it, that made me so happy. When a movie infiltrates its way into your lived life, it is magical.
Do the Right Thing
I can’t overstate how important Do The Right Thing was to me and other aspiring Black filmmakers of my generation and generations after. I sat in a West End movie theatre with a tub of popcorn and watched as a maestro showed me what was actually possible.
Black Panther
The most thrilling cinematic experience of my life. Before Black Panther, I have never been much of a fan of superhero or big action movies but watching Black Panther in a movie theatre in Baldwin Hills on opening night, I realized this was the film I d been waiting for for over 50 years.
La Nuit des rois
Bold, original and riveting filmmaking that pays homage to the African tradition of oral storytelling. Totally specific and yet utterly universal. A film about the wonders and transformative power of stories and storytelling
I Am Not a Witch
A beautiful, haunting, visually striking film that deftly deals with a whole host of complicated issues.