Oscar Micheaux is one of my motion picture heroes.
With courage and determination, he set out to make movies for and about black people when it wasn't otherwise much done.
He was a pioneer in independent film-making, raising money in the most unusual places and unusual ways.
He deserves a lot of praise ... but, alas, his results were too often disappointing.
"Within Our Gates" has a lot of potential, but most of it is unmet.
The acting is pretty good, but the camera work and editing are lacking; and the script misses badly.
The story is a good one, and the school that is at the heart of a major subplot has a real-life counterpart: Professor Laurance Jones created a school for the black people of the piney woods near Jackson, Mississippi, in the very earliest years of the 20th century.
Professor Jones' story is incredibly inspiring and I urge everyone who cares about spirit and courage to take a look (http://www.antiqbook.com/boox/vol/21991.shtml is one source).
Micheaux and Jones have somewhat parallel lives, though Jones ultimately achieved recognition in his lifetime.
Micheaux should have, and I am grateful beyond words that at least his films are finally being seen by a wider audience.
They are flawed, yes, but they present two stories we all need to know about: The actual topic of the movie, and that of Micheaux himself.
The ending of this movie is, frankly, beyond my comprehension. It seems to come out of thin air, and I fear it must have been hastily tacked on in order to placate someone. Too bad, but still the movie is historically valuable.
This is added June 10, 2015: There is a print available at YouTube.com, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1E0NrcnwAE
I haven't watched more than a few seconds, but so far it's a terrible print.
With courage and determination, he set out to make movies for and about black people when it wasn't otherwise much done.
He was a pioneer in independent film-making, raising money in the most unusual places and unusual ways.
He deserves a lot of praise ... but, alas, his results were too often disappointing.
"Within Our Gates" has a lot of potential, but most of it is unmet.
The acting is pretty good, but the camera work and editing are lacking; and the script misses badly.
The story is a good one, and the school that is at the heart of a major subplot has a real-life counterpart: Professor Laurance Jones created a school for the black people of the piney woods near Jackson, Mississippi, in the very earliest years of the 20th century.
Professor Jones' story is incredibly inspiring and I urge everyone who cares about spirit and courage to take a look (http://www.antiqbook.com/boox/vol/21991.shtml is one source).
Micheaux and Jones have somewhat parallel lives, though Jones ultimately achieved recognition in his lifetime.
Micheaux should have, and I am grateful beyond words that at least his films are finally being seen by a wider audience.
They are flawed, yes, but they present two stories we all need to know about: The actual topic of the movie, and that of Micheaux himself.
The ending of this movie is, frankly, beyond my comprehension. It seems to come out of thin air, and I fear it must have been hastily tacked on in order to placate someone. Too bad, but still the movie is historically valuable.
This is added June 10, 2015: There is a print available at YouTube.com, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1E0NrcnwAE
I haven't watched more than a few seconds, but so far it's a terrible print.