Movies:
Cry the Beloved Country
- Rating:
- Genre: Drama
- Movie Type: Message Movie, Courtroom Drama
- Themes: Social Injustice, Race Relations
- Director: Zoltan Korda
- Main Cast: Canada Lee, Charles Carson, Sidney Poitier, Joyce Carey, Geoffrey Keen
- Release Year: 1951
- Country: US/UK
- Run Time: 111 minutes
Plot
This deliberately paced British film about a black rural priest and a white landowner whose paths cross in 1940s South Africa remains one of the most powerful cinematic statements on racism. Based on Alan Paton's landmark novel, Cry the Beloved Country is, in hindsight, naïve in its belief that apartheid would be easier to overcome than history proved it to be, but its intentions are certainly in the right place and it never trivializes the importance of the issue. To the credit of both Paton and director-producer Zoltan Korda, the film maintains a dignity and relevancy that is not always true of other "message" movies from the 1940s and '50s. Partly, this is because the characters, both black and white, are much more fully developed than a Hollywood production would have allowed them to be. Another factor is that the filmmakers do not resort to heavy-handedness, and instead allow the story to speak for itself. Knowing that the film was actually shot on location in South Africa during the height of apartheid only compounds the impact of this film. Canada Lee, as the priest Kumalo, and Charles Carson, as the farmer Jarvis, give stunning, multi-layered performances as two men who must go through a wrenching emotional experience. The solid supporting cast includes Joyce Carey as Jarvis' wife and a twenty-something Sidney Poitier as a Johannesburg priest. More than forty years later, after apartheid's fall, Cry the Beloved Country was remade with James Earl Jones and Richard Harris. ~ Bob Mastrangelo, All Movie GuideReview
A passionate film that is surprisingly perceptive about the Apartheid issue in South Africa, Cry the Beloved Country is an immensely moving and involving cinematic experience. Beautifully drawn from Alan Paton's classic novel, Country is too often dismissed by those who have not seen it as a "message" picture. Certainly, Country is grappling with an intense social topic that was all too current in 1951; but the problem of Apartheid, while it informs almost every frame of the film, ultimately becomes of almost secondary importance. The transformative experience shared by Stephen Kumolo and James Jarvis is what the film really becomes about, and the heartbreaking growth that they endure. Looking at the issue from a human and humane point of view, making the universal specific, Country becomes a powerful drama that grabs the audience and never lets go. The excellent screenplay deserves tremendous credit, but so does Zoltan Korda, who has directed it with the utmost respect and a sure and welcome combination of restraint and compassion. He is blessed to have Canada Lee and Charles Carson as his stars, each giving a performance that is perfectly attuned to the needs of the film. They create two characters that are fundamentally real, and the audience becomes wrapped up in their journey. There are a few complaints about Country, such as some choppy editing here and there, but on the whole it is a first rate drama. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie GuideCast
- Canada Lee - Stephen Kumalo
- Charles Carson - James Jarvis
- Sidney Poitier - Rev. Maimangu
- Joyce Carey - Margaret Jarvis
- Geoffrey Keen - Father Vincent
Michael Goodliffe - Martens; Edric Connor - John Kumalo; Lionel Ngakane - Absalom; Vivien Clinton - Mary; Albertina Temba - Mrs. Kumalo; Bruce Anderson - Farmer Smith; Bruce Meredith Smith - Captain Jaarsveldt; Andrew Kay - Harrison, Jr.; Ribbon Dhlamini - Gertrude Kumalo; Shayiaw Riba - Fr. Tisa; Jsepo Gugusha - Gertrude's Child; Michael Golden - 2nd Reporter; Clement McCallin - 1st Reporter; Stanley van Beers - Judge; John Arnatt - Prison warden; Scott Harrold - Police Superintendent; Henry Blumenthal - Arthur Jarvis; Cyril Kwaza - Matthew Kumalo; Charles MacRae - Kumalo's Friend; Reginald Ngaeabo
