The Big Cigar

Name: The Big Cigar
Genre: 18
Released: 2024
Rating: 5.5

20245.5tv

Where to Watch

Apple TV

Set up your streaming services

Black Panther Party co-founder Huey P. Newton enlists an unlikely ally—Hollywood producer Bert Schneider—to elude an FBI manhunt and escape to Cuba.

Who would love this

♥Fans of historical "caper" stories and true-crime adaptations.
♥Viewers who enjoy high-gloss, fast-paced period dramas with a 1970s aesthetic.
♥Those interested in the intersection of Hollywood culture and political activism.

Who might not

✗Viewers seeking a serious, historically rigorous, or unflinching examination of the Black Panther Party.
✗Those who dislike fragmented, non-linear storytelling or "style-over-substance" editing.
✗Audiences who prefer character-driven dramas that avoid centering white perspectives in stories about Black historical figures.

Shows similar to The Big Cigar

The 'Burbs

Ironheart

Rounders

Scream 2

The Evil Lawyer

The Lady

Over Your Dead Body

Scream 4

Scream 3

RJ Decker

Get Shorty

Breaking Bear

What critics are saying about The Big Cigar

Newton's escape from the FBI to Cuba. The series has fierce suspense, high product value, a deep ensemble, and keen psychological underpinnings. ... Though “The Big Cigar” is a sprawling, supercharged time capsule, one that fascinatingly blends a specific moment in Hollywood with the politically fraught reality of what was happening outside of dreamland—this series lacks an unflinching edge. ... 240 minutes ‧ 2024. Robert Daniels. May 17, 2024. 6 min read. It’s an odd sensation to balance a series that at once works but doesn’t wholly meet your expectations. In the moment, as you’re clearly enjoying yourself, you can’t help but feel a nagging, pestering pull for more. Jim Hecht’s Apple TV+ miniseries “The Big Cigar,” based on Joshuah Bearman’s same-titled book, concerns Huey P. Newton’s escape from the FBI to Cuba.The best movie reviews, in your inbox.

The Big Cigar movie review & film summary - Roger Ebert

This drama about a fake movie fabricated to let Black Panther fugitive Huey P Newton flee to Cuba in the 70s not only dilutes the story of a Black leader. ... The Big Cigar lacks a sense of the historical stakes (the undercover FBI agents are depicted as Keystone cops in bellbottoms and love beads) but it does engage interestingly with the issue of Hollywood’s role in all this. When Newton and Schneider first meet, it’s at a glitzy showbiz party thrown by the latter, where – in between snorting lines and laughing it up with Jack Nicholson – he eagerly makes the case for cinema’s world-changing power. Newton is sceptical. ... This drama about a fake movie fabricated to let Black Panther fugitive Huey P Newton flee to Cuba in the 70s not only dilutes the story of a Black leader – it centres the white characters. Eyes ...

The Big Cigar review – proof that Hollywood can't be trusted to tell ...