Black Men Can't Jump In Hollywood

The third episode of our Cuba Gooding Jr. mini-series brings us to the 2000 bio-pic film Men of Honor co-starring Robert Deniro. We discuss whether this is Cuba's greatest performance, the Hollywood's troublesome trend with white savior moments, how this film handled the struggles of racism, and if a movie that was mostly forgotten by the mainstream truly helped the cause.

Special guest Phil Augusta Jackson (Key & Peele, Brooklyn Nine-Nine) joins us as we continue our Cuba Gooding Jr. mini-series with the 1996 film Jerry Maguire. Though this film earned Cuba the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, did it ultimately help or hurt his career? How stereotypical was this role? Can a film with a white lead still help the cause? Listen to find out! This week's episode is brought to you by Hims! (www.forhims.com)

Are you ready? We kick off the start of our new "Cuba Gooding Jr. mini-series" with the legendary 1991 film Boyz N the Hood directed by John Singleton. There is so much to unpack including the incredible backstory of how the movie came to be, the amazing cast that includes Lawrence Fishburne, Ice Cube, Angela Basset, and Nia Long, how the themes of this film are still relevant today, and why this film didn't instantly launch Cuba into stardom. This is an episode you don't want to miss!

Special guest Rasheda Crockett (Adam Ruins Everything) joins James III and Jonathan Braylock to discuss the new Gabrielle Union film Breaking In. We discuss Gabrielle's long career, the utter absence of generic action movies starring women of color, whether or not Gaby's character should've beat her children, and if this film helped the cause!This week's episode is brought to you by Quip! (getquip.com/jump)

We have no business reviewing this movie but are doing it anyway, because #Wakanda. We discuss the incredible cinematic feat of Infinity Wars, debate about how the actors of color faired in the movie, hypothesize about what the future of this franchise is, and decide whether or not this film helped the cause.This week's episode is brought to you by Squarespace and Hims!

With blockbuster season in full swing, we take a look at the perhaps the greatest blockbuster champion of all time Will Smith and his 2007 film I Am Legend. We discuss if this movie was a turning point in his career, whether Will's desire to always be the hero ruined the movie, and if a Will Smith comeback is possible. This week's episode is brought to you by HIMS (www.forhims.com/jump5)

We delve into the career of Orlando Jones by reviewing the only movie he ever lead, 2002's Double Take with Eddie Griffin. We speculate on why Orlando Jones never became a leading star, laugh about the endless plot twists of the movie, debate the competence of black characters in film, and decide whether or not this movie helped the cause.

We review the new #1 film at the box office, RAMPAGE, starring Dwayne Johnson and Naomie Harris. We talk about the unstoppable brand and star power of The Rock, the difference between fun blockbusters and dumb movies, the lack of supporting roles for POC and if this film helped the cause. 

This week we dive into the 1995 John Singleton film Higher Learning, with an ensemble cast featuring Omar Epps, Ice Cube, Regina King and Tyra Banks. We discuss the movie in the context of race relations in America today, school shootings, sexual assault, and how America has changed (if at all) on these issues 20+ years later.

This week we delve into the flash in a pan, Sci-Fi Netflix film The Cloverfield Paradox starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw and David Oyelowo. We talk about the loose tie-in to the Cloverfield franchise, the strange release strategy for the film, whether Gugu's character felt like a hero and if this film helped the cause.

We review the new film Pacific Rim: Uprising, starring John Boyega, that recently dethroned Black Panther's 5 week run as #1 in the box office. We talk about the star quality of Boyega, the Pacific Rim franchise as a whole, the diversity of the cast, Scott Eastwood's chin, and if this film helped the cause!

This week we bring a special episode of the podcast recorded live in Austin where we play the Black Men Can't Jump game show, testing the audience's knowledge on all things black in cinema. James III showcases some impressions, Jonathan Braylock delves into the history of whitewashing and Jerah Milligan rewrites a popular movie to empower women characters in film. Which host will be the audience favorite? Listen to find out!This episode was brought to you by Sirius XM!

In honor of Women's History Month and the historic achievement of Ava Duvernay, the guys hand the reigns over to Katharine Lerner, Tessa Claire Hersh, and X Mayo to discuss the new film A Wrinkle In Time starring Storm Reid, Oprah Winfrey, Mindy Kaling and Reese Witherspoon. The ladies discuss the importance of representation on screen, the brilliant and uplifting source material of A Wrinkle in Time, and if this film helped the cause.This episode was brought to you by Sirius XM!

Special guest The Reverend Shawn Amos (singer, songwriter) joins to talk the 1990 Spike Lee joint Mo' Better Blues starring Denzel Washington. We discuss the integration of black music with black film, the difficulties of following up Do the Right Thing, how black women are represented by black male directors and if this movie helped the cause!

Superstar and fourth-time guest Phoebe Robinson (2 Dope Queens, So Many White Guys) joins our annual discussion of the films of the Academy Awards. We discuss the refreshingly diverse Best Director category, why it's tough for people of color to jump aboard the Lady Bird train, our issues with Three Billboards, the phenomenon that is Get Out and much more!

Wakanda!!! You know what time it is. We review the smash box office hit Black Panther directed by Ryan Coogler, starring Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira and a whole lot more. We discuss why Black Panther is so important to the black community, how this film can open a new chapter of diversity in Hollywood, the emergence of Letitia Wright, the nuanced political, racial and spiritual themes of the film and if this film helped "the cause". Just kidding, you already know it got six black fists. Step into the spotlight!

In anticipation of Black Panther, we review the 2012 film that jump started the career of Ryan Coogler and turned Michael B. Jordan into a leading man: Fruitvale Station. Special guest Mamoudou N'Diaye (Mic) joins as we talk about the brilliance of Coogler, why this film was snubbed by the Oscars, police brutality, racism... hell we talk about all of it, just listen!

Legendary writer and producer, Devon Shepard (MadTV, Weeds, The Wayans Bros.), joins us to discuss the 2009 cult classic Black Dynamite, written by and starring Michael Jai White. We breakdown the comedic genius of the film, it's honor for Blacksplotation, how Hollywood has cheated us out of a Michael Jai White action career, and how this film helped the cause!

Returning super-guest Tessa Claire Hersh drops by to keep Jon in check, to start a movement, and to review the 1993 Robert Townsend spectacular 'Meteor Man'! What can you say about a movie with Marla Gibbs, James Earl Jones, Eddie Griffin, Don Cheadle, Sinbad, and Bill Cosby? For starters it had a 30 million dollar budget and rotten tomatoes gives it a 29%. Find out if the crew has more love than that!

We take a walk down memory lane with the 1992 film Bebe's Kids starring Faizon Love as Robin Harris. We talk about the surprising lack of black characters in animated films, the low key depth of the films story, and if this PG-13 cartoon actually helped the cause.