LibGuides: Caribbean American Heritage Month: Videos

Streaming Video from FAU Libraries

Ethnographic Video Online This link opens in a new window Ethnographic Video Online provides a comprehensive resource for the study of human culture and behavior. The collection covers every region of the world and feature the work of many of the influential documentary filmmakers of the 20th century, including interviews, previously unreleased raw footage, field notes, study guides, and more.
Filmakers Library Online This link opens in a new window This multidisciplinary collection provides award-winning documentaries with relevance across the curriculumrace and gender studies, human rights, globalization and global studies, multiculturalism, international relations, criminal justice, the environment, bioethics, health, political science and current events, psychology, arts, literature, and more. It presents points of view and historical and current experiences from diverse cultures and traditions world-wide.
Films on Demand This link opens in a new window

Feature Films

A selection of DVD and video feature films with Caribbean-American themes available at the Wimberly Library media center. Click on the titles for more information.

Burn! DVD: "This story of political greed and social upheaval will take you on a journey deep into the heart of darkness on a 19th century Caribbean island, where slaves on vast Portuguese sugar plantations are ready to rebel. The British send their agent, William Walker, on a devious 3-part mission: trick the slaves into revolt, grab the sugar trade for England and then return the slaves to servitude." Starring Marlon Brando
Captain Blood DVD: "Dr. Peter Blood, a British surgeon, is arrested and wrongly condemned to slavery in the Caribbean for helping a rebel soldier in England, 1685. After spending some time as a slave, he escapes along with many ex-seamen, steals a ship and becomes a pirate who gives his riches to the poor." Starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, and Basil Rathbone.
I walked with a zombie VHS: "A nurse, suspecting that her patient, the wife of a plantation owner, on a Caribbean island, has been made into a zombie, visits a voodoo ritual to confirm her intuition."
Pirates of the Caribbean. At world's end DVD: "After Elizabeth, Will, and Captain Barbossa rescue Captain Jack Sparrow, who is trapped in Davy Jones' Locker, they must face their foes. Lord Cutler Beckett, now has control of Jones' heart and forms a dark alliance with him in order to rule the seas and wipe out the last of the Pirates. Jack, Barbossa, Will, Elizabeth, and crew must call the Pirate Lords from the four corners of the globe, including the infamous Sao Feng, together. The Pirate Lords want to release the goddess Calypso, Davy Jones's damned lover, from the trap they sent her. The Pirate Lords must combine the 9 pieces that bound her by ritual to undo it and release her in hopes that she will help them fight. All pirates will stand together and make their final stand for freedom against Beckett, Jones, Norrington, the Flying Dutchman, and the entire East India Trading Company." Starring: Johnny Depp
Pirates of the Caribbean. Dead man's chest DVD: "As Will and Elizabeth prepare to exchange vows at the altar, their wedding plans hit rough waters with the arrival of sea-bound scallywag Jack Sparrow. It seems that Sparrow owes a substantial blood debt to half-octopus sea captain Davy Jones, and that the only way for the flamboyant sea rover to elude the wrath of his otherworldly pursuer is to seek the aid of mysterious and powerful voodoo priestess Tia Dalma, whose ability to resurrect the dead and gaze into the future may provide just the advantage needed to avoid a waterlogged fate in the locker of his legendary nemesis." Starring: Johnny Depp
Pirates of the Caribbean. On stranger tides DVD: "When Jack crosses paths with a woman from his past, he's not sure if it's love, or if she's a ruthless con artist using him to find the fabled Fountain of Youth. Forced aboard the ship of the most feared pirate ever, Jack doesn't know who to fear more, Blackbeard or the woman from his past." Starring: Johnny Depp
Pirates of the Caribbean: the curse of the Black Pearl DVD: "The roguish yet charming Captain Jack Sparrow's idyllic pirate life capsizes after his nemesis, the wily Captain Barbossa, steals his ship, the Black Pearl, and later attacks the town of Port Royal. Captain Barbossa kidnaps the governor's beautiful daughter, Elizabeth. In a gallant attempt to rescue her and recapture the Black Pearl, Elizabeth's childhood friend Will Turner joins forces with Jack. What Will doesn't know is that a cursed treasure has doomed Barbossa and his crew to live forever as the undead." Starring: Johnny Depp

Documentaries

A selection of DVD and video documentaries with Caribbean-American themes available at the Wimberly Library media center, located on the first floor of th west side of the library. Click on the titles for more information.

An Evening with Katherine Dunham DVD: "Insight Media website. A celebration of the legendary dancer Katherine Dunham at age 95. Includes a video tribute to Dunham's career, rare footage of Dunham drumming with percussionists, discussion of her views on rhythmic motion, Haitian dance, and love, a performance by the Louinès Louinis Haitian Dance Theater and remarks by Katherine Dunham followed by a question and answer session."
And the dish ran away with the sppon VHS: "A fascinating documentary from Trinidad and Tobago about the domination of Caribbean television by programs from the North, primarily the US. This film ambitiously weaves together interviews, indigenous poetry and music with clips from imported French and US television programs to show how Caribbean viewers receive a distorted view of the world that alienates them from their own cultural heritage. Also included is a glimpse of how Cuba has tackled the problem and the US response in the form of Radio Marti. Using poetry, interviews, music, and clips from television shows, this film highlights the effects of American television broadcasts on local cultures in the Caribbean. The film looks at Cuba's attempts to produce locally-oriented broadcasting, and the response to this from the United States by introducing the anti-Castro station TV Marti."
Black in Latin America DVD: "Henry Louis Gates Jr. travels to Haiti, Dominican Republic, Cuba, Brazil, Mexico and Peru to discover the African influence on Latin America. He examines the shared legacy of colonialism and slavery in a region that imported ten times as many slaves as the United States, and kept them in bondage far longer. Gates finds that the influence of people of African descent has had a massive influence on the history and culture of Latin America and the Caribbean, despite sometimes being forgotten or ignored."
Bob Marley Story VHS: "Documentary that traces the life of Bob Marley, the reggae singer and composer, from his beginnings as a poor boy in Jamaica to his international stardom. Explores his creativity and deep religious beliefs through interviews with family members and friends, plus rare footage of Marley himself."
Celebration: a Caribbean festival VHS: "Portrays the color, music, and pride of Carnival in America's largest Caribbean community, which has become an annual event in New York. Captures the thoughts and feelings of expatriate West Indians through the festivals, preparations, and music, specifically calypso and steel band."
Chutney in Yuh Soca : a multicultural mix VHS: "A film showing the interaction of the East Indian and African populations of Trinidad and Tobago through the popular music "Chutney" which is an combination of Indian folk tunes with the tempo and spice of the Caribbean. The Gospel Truth: A Black family in Great Britain reaffirms their values and family cohesiveness through the singing of gospel music. Songs For Our Daughters: West Indian women in Britain discuss the way they pass their heritage and culture on to their mixed race daughters."
City of Coral VHS: "Presents a unique look at a Caribbean coral reef. Explored is the reef's ecological environment, the ecosystems within the environment and the habitors of each system, with special emphasis on the means used by various animals to survive in this complex environment: where the line between plants and animals is blurred; where 'rocks' move, eat, and fight; where fish are farmers; and where weak animals borrow the shields and weapons of stronger ones."
Dance Black America: a festival of modern, jazz, tap & African styles VHS: "Documents a four-day festival of Black dancers and dance companies held at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, April 21-24, 1983, in the context of an historical survey which indicates the African and Caribbean heritage upon which Black American dance is based. The festival was held by the State University of New York and the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Dance class scenes are included and major contemporary Black dancers and dance companies perform."
H-2 Worker VHS: "Each year 10,000 Caribbean men are selectively chosen by American sugar corporations to harvest sugar cane for six months in Florida under temporary H-2 guestwoker visas. The film exposes the brutal, systematic exploitation of Jamaican guest workers by the Florida sugar cane industry." Best Documentary, Sundance Film Festival, 1990
House on Fire VHS: "his film is part of the series "A Question of Rights" that explores what governments, communities, NCOs and individuals are doing to ensure that women's reproductive rights are recognized in Ethiopia, Latvia, Jamaica and Fiji. Segment looks at Jamica and the Caribbean area which has one of the highest rates of domestic violence in the world. Triggered by unemployment and drug use, it's also perpetuated by a culture that still fails to condemn violence against women, and sexual violence in particular, as a crime."
Hurricane! VHS: "This program traces the path of Hurricane Gilbert, which struck the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico from Sept. 11 to 16, 1988. It presents the work of research scientists at the Hurricane Research Division and officials at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida, who work to predict the path and intensity of a hurricane in time to warn coastal populations in its path. It includes footage filmed during Hurricanes Andrew and Iniki of 1992." Closed captioned for the hearing impaired.
Jamesie: king of scratch DVD: "Features a form of folk music indigenous to the Caribbean and recently declared as the "official" music of the Virgin Islands. "Scratch band music", also known as Quelbe, is a traditional and longstanding art of the region, in danger of being marginalized or forgotten due to encroaching North American culture. The film follows the work and performances of 79-year old Jamesie Brewster, known as the "King of Scratch", shown performing and promoting Quelbe in nightclubs, fairs, festivals, classrooms, as well as discussing the artform one-on-one."
The Garifuna journey VHS: "Presents the rich culture and fascinating trajectory of the Garifuna of Belize--descendents of Carib Indians and Africans who successfully resisted slavery. This celebratory documentary presents their history from both the outsider and insider vantage points, the result of a collaboration between the Chicago filmmakers and the Garifuna community. Testimonials by members of the Garifuna are intercut with scenes of cooking, dancing, eating, expressions of their spirituality and other rituals." Made in collaboration with the Garinagu of Belize and the United States.
The gringo in mañanaland VHS: "A montage of U.S.-produced films about Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean and Latin America, from silent films through 1995 television news, including corporate videos, around the themes of U.S. discovery of a tropical paradise with friendly native women, of money to be made, of local bandits and the need for U.S. troops to create and maintain order there. Films excerpted include, in order of initial appearance: Down Mexico way; The Americans (1916 silent); United Fruit documentaries on their Great White Fleet; Ghost breakers; Yolanda and the thief; Naked jungle; Tropic zone (with Ronald Reagan); Carnival in Costa Rica; Torrid zone; Blowing wild; Fire down below; Only angels have wings; Mexicali rose; Weekend in Havana; Down Argentina way; Carnival in Costa Rica; Viva Zapata. Ronald Reagan is featured in several of these films."
Voodoo secrets VHS: "Explores the history of voodoo from its roots in West Africa to its position today in the Caribbean and the United States. Examines the religion's beliefs, deities, and customs and includes footage of ceremonies and interviews with practioners. Discusses the misconceptions and reality of Voodoo with Wade Davis, author of The Serpent and The Rainbow. From its origins in Africa to candid testimony from modern believers, this is an eye-opening look at the rites and roots of Voodoo."
Wide Sargasso Sea: real and imaginary islands DVD: "Born and raised on the Caribbean island of Dominica, Jean Rhys used her native home as the setting for a novel derived from Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. This program, filmed on location, explores the profound and complex effects of Dominica's landscape, history, and culture on the writing of Wide Sargasso Sea. Scholars, cultural historians, and Rhys' biographer, Carole Angier, discuss these influences on the book, as well as the notion of the historical novel as a hybrid literary creation."

Last updated on Dec 18, 2024 11:56 AM