Chaplin
Better off silent
A little different than Babe: Pig in the City, this John Singleton film was also another underrated film from 1998.
SYNOPSIS: In 1923 Florida, a small African-American community is ripped apart when a white woman in a neighboring town falsely accuses a black man of rape. This leads to an all-out race war. Thrust into the fray is Ving Rhames, playing a drifter who unwittingly finds himself in a position to help the community--partnered with a white shop owner played by Jon Voight, who himself has a sort of kinship with the African-American people, even if many of them doubt his sincerity.
It has been a long time since I've actually seen this film, but I remember it to be quite striking. I'm not the biggest John Singleton fan, as I think he holds a slight prejudice towards white people (as evidenced in Higher Learning), but at least his casting of Jon Voight didn't turn out to be the standard, studio-ordered role that could have easily been a caricature.
Both of the main actors turn in stellar performances in this, sadly, little-seen drama. What turns into a race war steadily turns into a struggle for survival, as dozens of the residents of Rosewood have to turn their backs on their homes and escape the misdirected hatred of a few backwoods white people.
The photography is stark, and I was reminded of the woods in Deliverance (although thank goodness, not the cringe-inducing madness of that film) in all the leafless trees, grouped together, and little shanty shacks barely standing amongst them.
But, in the midst of all this, the little town of Rosewood isn't only a poor town, it is actually inhabited by some comfortable African-American families, with strong values and strong morals. Which makes them all the more surprised when one of their own is accused of rape.
The film is also helped by the great work by the supporting cast, mainly Don Cheadle as one of the more affluent black men in the town and Michael Rooker as the white sheriff.
All in all, the film is a searing look at racism, and clearly represents what can happen if it is let loose based on a lie.
SYNOPSIS: In 1923 Florida, a small African-American community is ripped apart when a white woman in a neighboring town falsely accuses a black man of rape. This leads to an all-out race war. Thrust into the fray is Ving Rhames, playing a drifter who unwittingly finds himself in a position to help the community--partnered with a white shop owner played by Jon Voight, who himself has a sort of kinship with the African-American people, even if many of them doubt his sincerity.
It has been a long time since I've actually seen this film, but I remember it to be quite striking. I'm not the biggest John Singleton fan, as I think he holds a slight prejudice towards white people (as evidenced in Higher Learning), but at least his casting of Jon Voight didn't turn out to be the standard, studio-ordered role that could have easily been a caricature.
Both of the main actors turn in stellar performances in this, sadly, little-seen drama. What turns into a race war steadily turns into a struggle for survival, as dozens of the residents of Rosewood have to turn their backs on their homes and escape the misdirected hatred of a few backwoods white people.
The photography is stark, and I was reminded of the woods in Deliverance (although thank goodness, not the cringe-inducing madness of that film) in all the leafless trees, grouped together, and little shanty shacks barely standing amongst them.
But, in the midst of all this, the little town of Rosewood isn't only a poor town, it is actually inhabited by some comfortable African-American families, with strong values and strong morals. Which makes them all the more surprised when one of their own is accused of rape.
The film is also helped by the great work by the supporting cast, mainly Don Cheadle as one of the more affluent black men in the town and Michael Rooker as the white sheriff.
All in all, the film is a searing look at racism, and clearly represents what can happen if it is let loose based on a lie.
