BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions

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BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions

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1h 53m

Sci-Fi

Drama

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19 Reviews

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Fewer than 50 Ratings

Adapted from Kahlil Joseph's renowned video art installation, BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions is a distinctive cinematic experience that mirrors the sonic textures of a record album, weaving fiction and history in an immersive journey where the fictionalized figures of W. E. B Du Bois and Marcus Garvey join artists, musicians, Joseph's family, and even Twitter chats, in a vision for black consciousness.

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Aisha Harris

NPR

Feb 28

Its most affecting moments are the essayistic montages of archival footage, which stitch together a clear-eyed mediation on memory, lineage, and the meaning of freedom.

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David Fear

Rolling Stone

Feb 28

Joseph’s quick tour through African-American culture over the last few centuries felt radical and mindblowing in the best possible way.

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Marshall Shaffer

Slant Magazine

Feb 21

2.5/4

This hybridized essay film embodies the complications and contradictions inherent within Black history—complete with all its erasures and variances.

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Carla Hay

Culture Mix

Dec 8

BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions is more of a visual feast than a wealth of information. It's formatted less like a documentary and more like a museum art installation that interprets the 1999 non-fiction book Africana.

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Lapacazo Magrira Sandoval

Los Angeles Sentinel

Dec 3

It is a complex, communal reckoning with what can be seen and what must be remembered.

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Brooke Obie

Black Girl Watching

Sep 20

Its African, nonlinear layering of time can make for a bit of a challenging watch to the average viewer, but would make a stunning museum exhibit.

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Steph

Dec 12

It’s like if an art exhibit were a film. Beautiful. Can’t wait to see it again.

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cryorc

Dec 1

Loved this film! Excellent story telling.

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Magic

Nov 29

The different nature of visually telling history. It’s a strong representation of an artist.

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Stephen C

@bob25009 Nov 29

Success in 01 hour and 53 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Kahlil Joseph

Director

Shaunette Renée Wilson

Actor

Penny Johnson

Actor

Zora Casebere

Actor

Bria Samoné Henderson

Actor

Kaneza Schaal

Actor

Awards Leaderboard: Best Movies of 2025

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Synopsis

Adapted from Kahlil Joseph's renowned video art installation, BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions is a distinctive cinematic experience that mirrors the sonic textures of a record album, weaving fiction and history in an immersive journey where the fictionalized figures of W. E. B Du Bois and Marcus Garvey join artists, musicians, Joseph's family, and even Twitter chats, in a vision for black consciousness.

Director: Kahlil Joseph
Producer: Onye Anyanwu, Kahlil Joseph, Amy Greenleaf, Nic Gonda
Screenwriter: Sheba Anyanwu, Kristen Adele Calhoun, Madebo Fatunde, Kahlil Joseph, Saidiya Hartman, Irvin Hunt
Distributor: Rich Spirit
Production Co: Rich Spirit, BN Media
Genre: Sci-Fi, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 28, 2025, Limited
Runtime: 1h 53m