Malcolm X (1992 film)

Malcolm X
Inside the letter "X", Denzel Washington as Malcolm X looking towards the viewer with an American flag as a background.
International theatrical release poster
Directed bySpike Lee
Screenplay by
Based on
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyErnest Dickerson
Edited byBarry Alexander Brown
Music byTerence Blanchard
Production
company
Distributed by
Release date
  • November 18, 1992 (1992-11-18)
Running time
202 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$35 million[2]
Box office$73 million

Malcolm X is a 1992 American epic biographical drama film about the African-American activist Malcolm X. Directed and co-written by Spike Lee, the film stars Denzel Washington in the title role, alongside Angela Bassett, Albert Hall, Al Freeman Jr., and Delroy Lindo. Lee has a supporting role, while Black Panther Party co-founder Bobby Seale, the Rev. Al Sharpton, and future South African president Nelson Mandela make cameo appearances.

The screenplay, co-credited to Lee and Arnold Perl, is based largely on Alex Haley's 1965 book The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Haley had collaborated with Malcolm X on the book beginning in 1963 and completed it after Malcolm X's death. The film dramatizes key events in Malcolm X's life: his criminal career, his incarceration, his conversion to Islam, his ministry as a member of the Nation of Islam and his later falling out with the organization, his marriage to Betty X, his pilgrimage to Mecca and reevaluation of his views concerning whites, and his assassination in 1965. Defining childhood incidents, including his father's death, his mother's mental illness, and his experiences with racism are dramatized in flashbacks.

Malcolm X was distributed by Warner Bros. and released in the United States on November 18, 1992. The same year, Denzel Washington won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor for his performance. At the 65th Academy Awards, the film was nominated for two Oscars including the Best Actor for Washington and Best Costume Design for Ruth E. Carter. In 2010, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[3][4]

  1. ^ "Malcolm X (15)". British Board of Film Classification. January 21, 1993. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  2. ^ "Malcolm X Box Office Information". The Numbers. Nash Information, LLC. Archived from the original on August 27, 2019. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  3. ^ "Hollywood Blockbusters, Independent Films and Shorts Selected for 2010 National Film Registry". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on February 28, 2017. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  4. ^ "Complete National Film Registry Listing". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2020.