The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution

Name: The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution
Genre: Documentary
Released: September 2, 2015
Duration: 115 min
Rating: 79

2015

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews

See All

USER SCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 12 Ratings

See All

6.0

VOTE NOW

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

6.0	Your Score
6.0	User Score Mixed or average reviews based on 12 Ratings

Would you like to write a review?

There is a 75 character minimum for reviews. If your review contains spoilers, please check the Spoiler box. Please do not use ALL CAPS. There is no linking or other HTML allowed. Your review may be edited for content. 0/5000

Check box if your review contains spoilers

Play Sound

Please enter your birth date to watch this video:

You are not allowed to view this material at this time.

The Black Panthers: Vanguard Of The Revolution

Now Playing: The Black Panthers: Vanguard Of The Revolution

Movie Details & Credits

| Release Date: September 2, 2015 | Not Rated

Summary: This documentary tells the rise and fall of the Black Panther Party, one of the 20th century's most alluring and controversial organizations that captivated the world's attention for nearly 50 years.

Director: Stanley Nelson

Genre(s): Documentary

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 115 min

See All Details and Credits

Watch Now

Buy on

Stream On

Expand

Metascore

Positive:

Mixed:

Negative:

Critic Reviews

100

A.O. Scott

Sep 1, 2015

What is clear from this sober yet electrifying film is that the power of the Panthers was rooted in their insistence — radical then, radical still — that black lives matter. Read full review

Andrew O'Hehir

Sep 3, 2015

What we see in Stanley Nelson’s urgent and necessary documentary The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution is the story of an organization that meant many different things to many different people, and that changed so dramatically during five years or so in the national spotlight that it could almost be described as reshaping itself month by month and putting forward a distinctive face at almost every moment. Read full review

RogerEbert.com Odie Henderson

Sep 2, 2015

The film avoids hagiography, and in doing so, brings out the undeniable humanity of its subjects. Read full review

Farran Smith Nehme

Sep 2, 2015

This is mostly a sad and bloody tale, as the Panthers are decimated first by the machinations of J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI, and then by dissension in their own ranks. Read full review

Jeff Baker

Oct 9, 2015

Uses a deft mix of archival footage and interviews with historians and some very articulate Panther veterans. Read full review

Dennis Harvey

Sep 10, 2015

A sturdy recap of the titular organization’s short, tumultuous history. Read full review

Jordan Hoffman

Sep 3, 2015

Not a particularly exceptional movie in form, but as a thorough record it is extraordinary. Read full review

SEE ALL 20 REVIEWS

Write a Review

Mixed:

User Reviews

EpicLadySponge

Apr 3, 2016

The Black Panthers bring perfect success. With Vanguard of the Revolution, the Black Panthers know where things will start and where they'll be done and when they'll start and end.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

JamesL

Oct 25, 2015

I enjoyed this film as it is about a period of time that I found fascinating. I always enjoy films where I learn something and here I learned a lot about Fred Hampton. I enjoyed the footage and the insight into the movement in those days. That said, the film also is trying to provide aI enjoyed this film as it is about a period of time that I found fascinating. I always enjoy films where I learn something and here I learned a lot about Fred Hampton. I enjoyed the footage and the insight into the movement in those days. That said, the film also is trying to provide a revisionist history that plays down the criminal element of the Panthers and why they were unable to integrate with the white anti war movements. The demise of Newton is whitewashed and I would have rather that they gave us the true story instead of that. Still there was more depth than you get from most of these type films. Saints they were not and that could have been more candidly portrayed.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

akenaton1984

Apr 15, 2018

Un buen documental, aunque pudieron ser un poco más abiertos e investigar más. En algunas partes se siente que toman partido y suavizan mucho de lo que significo este partido. El formato es muy ortodoxo, imágenes de archivo seguidas de entrevistas con los protagonistas.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

SEE ALL 3 REVIEWS