Wow! Where to begin. The 1927 silent version of Uncle's Tom Cabin, directed by Harry A Pollard, leaves one speechless. Speechless as to what it is and speechless as to what it could have been had the filmmakers sincerely wanted to have the same impact of the original novel. So what went wrong? Did they change the plot drastically from the book?
No. In fact the story itself is a very good adaptation from Harriet Beecher Stowe's classic anti-slavery tale. What about the casting of Uncle Tom himself? Brilliant. James B. Lowe becomes the slave, Uncle Tom. With his inner strength and quiet wisdom, his performance makes it close to impossible to picture any other actor doing that role any better.
Okay, the white characters? Perfect casting again. From George Siegmann's evil portrayal of slave owner Simon Legree to Virginia Grey's heartbreaking work as the dying girl, Eva, all of them nail their characters as they flawlessly transfer from book to screen.
What about the other black characters? Well...the extra's are perfect. Being 1927, it's safe to say none of them in real life had the luxuries of their white counterparts and all of them most likely had a parent or grandparent that was actually around during the Civil War. The poverty and pain they lived in shows in the eyes and faces of every black extra in that film, adding more power to the original content.
I guess that leaves just one thing. The black supporting characters. And these are major roles intricate to the plot. So why in the hell were white actors cast in black face? Didn't the filmmakers learn anything from Birth of a Nation? One could argue that because of the time period that Uncle Tom's Cabin was made, the producers felt that white audiences wouldn't attend a film with half the cast a different color, but that argument doesn't fly considering director King Vidor, just two years later got an Oscar nomination for directing the all black drama, Hallelujah.
Everything else about this adaptation of Uncle Tom's Cabin is spot on. Had the producers had the courage to make this film right, it would have been remembered as one of the true classics of the silent era, instead of what it is - a sad reminder of America's ugly past.
No. In fact the story itself is a very good adaptation from Harriet Beecher Stowe's classic anti-slavery tale. What about the casting of Uncle Tom himself? Brilliant. James B. Lowe becomes the slave, Uncle Tom. With his inner strength and quiet wisdom, his performance makes it close to impossible to picture any other actor doing that role any better.
Okay, the white characters? Perfect casting again. From George Siegmann's evil portrayal of slave owner Simon Legree to Virginia Grey's heartbreaking work as the dying girl, Eva, all of them nail their characters as they flawlessly transfer from book to screen.
What about the other black characters? Well...the extra's are perfect. Being 1927, it's safe to say none of them in real life had the luxuries of their white counterparts and all of them most likely had a parent or grandparent that was actually around during the Civil War. The poverty and pain they lived in shows in the eyes and faces of every black extra in that film, adding more power to the original content.
I guess that leaves just one thing. The black supporting characters. And these are major roles intricate to the plot. So why in the hell were white actors cast in black face? Didn't the filmmakers learn anything from Birth of a Nation? One could argue that because of the time period that Uncle Tom's Cabin was made, the producers felt that white audiences wouldn't attend a film with half the cast a different color, but that argument doesn't fly considering director King Vidor, just two years later got an Oscar nomination for directing the all black drama, Hallelujah.
Everything else about this adaptation of Uncle Tom's Cabin is spot on. Had the producers had the courage to make this film right, it would have been remembered as one of the true classics of the silent era, instead of what it is - a sad reminder of America's ugly past.
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