Hollywood Africans

Send us Fan Mail Somali pirates steal the show in the 2013 film Captain Phillips. It tells the true life story of the 2009 hijacking of the Maersk Alabama off the coast off Somalia. Tom Hanks stars in the titular role and Barked Abdi as the pirate leader Abduwali Muse. But does the film ignore what's driving the attempt of the high-stakes heist? Join Barbara Angopa and Amaka Ugwunkwo in this...

Send a text The 1932 film Tarzan the Ape Man tells the story of European explorers on an expedition to find a fabled elephant graveyard to make billions selling the ivory. Along the way an epic romance is born when Jane meets Tarzan, a European man brought up by apes in the jungle somewhere in Africa. This episode focuses on the Africans who form a backdrop of film, but are barely heard. Join Barb...

Send a text Why doesn't Tarzan have any African friends, despite being brought up by an ape family somewhere in Africa?  Explore this intriguing question and more on the long-suffering African carriers risking their lives for an expedition party in part 2 of Tarzan the Ape Man review.  Join Barbara Angopa and Amaka Ugwunkwo on Hollywood Africans, the podcast that reframes, recasts, and remake...

Send a text Mercurial and Malignant or misunderstood? During a medical mission to Uganda, Scottish doctor Nicholas Garrigan becomes the personal physician and close confidante of President Idi Amin. But Garrigan soon realises that he’s become complicit in atrocities in a murderous regime and tries to escape… But does the Last King of Scotland promote stereotypes about African leaders? Join Barbara...

Send a text Mercurial and Malignant or misunderstood? During a medical mission to Uganda, Scottish doctor Nicholas Garrigan becomes the personal physician and close confidante of President Idi Amin. But Garrigan soon realises that he’s become complicit in atrocities in a murderous regime and tries to escape… But does the Last King of Scotland promote stereotypes about African leaders? Join Barbara...

Send a text Pretty much everything, from culture shock to diaspora drama, Prince Akeem's journey to find love tested more than just his royal patience—it put an entire continent's representation on the line. On Hollywood Africans , hosts Barbara Angopa and Amaka Ugwunkwo revisit the 1980s classic Coming to America to ask: Did Hollywood get it right, or did they just serve up another fant...

Send a text Before Wakanda, Zamunda was the go to movie for fictional African kingdoms. But does the comedy Coming to America throw Zamundan women under the bus? Welcome to Hollywood Africans, the podcast which reframes, recasts and remakes Africa and Africans in the movies. Join Barbara Angopa and Amaka Ugwunkwo in this Hollywood Africans two-parter on Apple podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever...

Send a text Out of Africa’s doomed romance, set against the backdrop of stunning Kenyan landscapes, was among the top box office draws in 1985. It tells the story of a Danish aristocrat who travels to Kenya in the run-up to World War One to set up a coffee farm in Kenya with her philandering husband. But does the portrayal of black Africans in the adaption of Baroness Karen Blixen's autobiogr...

Send a text Out of Africa’s doomed romance, set against the backdrop of stunning Kenyan landscapes, was among the top box office draws in 1985. It tells the story of a Danish aristocrat who travels to Kenya in the run-up to World War One to set up a coffee farm in Kenya with her philandering husband. But does the portrayal of black Africans in the adaption of Baroness Karen Blixen's autobiogr...

Send a text Beast of No Nations tells the story of Agu, a young boy captured by a West African rebel army and forced to fight on the frontline. The sadistic warlord commanding Agu in a battalion of child soldiers has shifting fortunes as he tries to climb his way to power. But does the film promote stereotypes about children in war zones? Join Barbara Angopa and Amaka Ugwunkwo in this Hollywood Af...

Send a text Beast of No Nations tells the story of Agu, a young boy captured by a West African rebel army and forced to fight on the frontline. The sadistic warlord commanding Agu in a battalion of child soldiers has shifting fortunes as he tries to climb his way to power. But does the film promote stereotypes about children in war zones? Join Barbara Angopa and Amaka Ugwunkwo in this Hollywood Af...

Send a text If legendary detective Miss Marple was set in Africa….she’d turn out something like Precious Ramotswe in beautiful and tranquil Botswana. Despite being underestimated Precious and her band of friends and colleagues solve crimes… one cup of Red bush tea at a time. But is this lady sleuth a bigot? Join Barbara Angopa and Amaka Ugwunkwo in this Hollywood Africans two-parter on Apple podca...