Black Girl

Black Girl, originally a play by Texas born writer J. E. Franklin, was adapted for the screen by Franklin and directed by the great Ossie Davis. The result is a stagey but effective extended family drama, with three sisters (Gloria Edwards, Loretta Greene, and Peggy Pettit) plotting against the successful adopted fourth daughter (Leslie Uggams). Brock Peters is top-billed as the father of the girls, but his performance is little more than a glorified cameo, and it's up to the women to carry the show. Most effective are Greene, as the pregnant middle daughter, Louise Stubbs as the mother, and Claudia McNeill as the grandmother and matriarch of the family. Less effective is Uggams, whose droopy eyed look simply doesn't evince much sympathy, and Edwards, who is over the top at times as the eldest and meanest sibling. There's a brief non-speaking appearance by Mrs. Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, and a sterling performance by an uncredited gentlemen who plays Mr. Herbert, a boarder who has shacked up with McNeill's character. This film is all about the characters, and there are some meaty scenes, especially when Uggams returns home from college unannounced. The film was clearly a labour of love, and all things considered, is a simple but solid effort, quite moving at times and generally effective.

I have seen Black Girl about 4 or 5 times, and I enjoy it each time I see it. TV One runs it quite a bit. I'm a product of the 70's and I just love the 70's. I love all the old movies from the 70's. The part of Netta was played by Leslie Uggams (did you notice how knock-kneed she is? LOL) I was surprised to learn that the father in the movie was a pimp. I didn't even realize that, but he did have a Caddy and was throwing money around like it was just plain old paper. A few of the cast members are deceased: Gloria Edwards, Claudia McNeill, the lady who played the mother. Did anyone know that Gloria Edwards was married to the actor Dick Anthony Williams?

The story has several stories intertwined. It takes place in the 70's as evident by the Afro hairstyles. It's the story of a matriarchal family, which includes Mu'Dear, her daughter and three granddaughters plus an adopted educated daughter. The sisters take ignorance to another level in that they see education and wanting to better oneself as selling out, as in a negative behavior. One sister does not have the same father, but does have a better disposition and career aspirations. The half sister, Billie Jean has aspirations of being a dancer, but her lazy no count sisters don't want her become anything more higher than them. It is truly the epitome of the crabs in the basket syndrome. Mu'Dear and her live in lover provide some much needed wisdom and stability in the family. The sisters envy an adopted sister because she made something of herself. The mother favors this daughter and it creates resentment amongst the sisters. The mother behavior is based upon fear and ignorance. Mrs. Ruby Dee has a special guest role as a woman with mental problems and the mother of the adopted daughter. I was interested in the actors and was very sad that pictures and more biographical information was not available on some of the characters. Brock Peters has an interesting role as the father of two of the sisters. He unsuccessfully tries to reunite with his family. It is a good movie to see as it shows how we have evolved in subject matter, movie directing and production.

This is a very interesting movie to me.I don't remember seeing it back when it came out and I would have.Claudia McNeil(Mu'Dear) is a favorite of mine ever since I saw her in the movie version of "A Raisin in the Sun."With all the shouting and bickering through this film it was nice to have her calm everything down at the end.I couldn't figure out where al the anger came from in the household.It seemed like the movie started in the middle of the story being told.The youngest daughter has quit school and is dancing in a bar,the mother(Mama Rose) is working as a maid to support the household yet everybody is grown.The two oldest daughters don't live at home,the grandmother has a man living with her and btw that seemed very out of character like something the mother would be doing instead.Also for all the preaching Mama Rose did when the father(a pimp?) of the two oldest comes back for a visit he makes a vulgar comment about the youngest(Billie Jean)saying he'd take her to Detroit and turn her out. She isn't his child and everybody except the boarder thinks it's funny.Billie Jean wants to study dance and buy her mother a house while the two oldest are the meanest and most hateful characters and both got on my nerves throughout the whole film.Neither were doing anything but having children and talking about their husbands yet both were very jealous of Billie Jean and Netta(college student) who their mother had taken in.They seem to exist to spew poison about both girls and use Netta to drag Billie Jean down to their hateful level which happens.A basic cable channel that features African-Americans shows this movie regularly and I'm sad to find out after he passed this week that Ossie Davis directed it.His wife Ruby Dee plays Netta disturbed mother that couldn't care for her.Netta comes into the movie so late you almost forget she's involved.The plot is Mama Rose can only talk about how proud she is of her daughter Netta and with mother's day coming up she's looking forward to her coming home.Her three daughters are sick of their mother praising a stranger while having nothing good to say about her blood children.All three hide Netta's letters to Mama Rose and she has no idea about it.Norma and Ruth Ann tell Billie Jean their mother is giving Netta her room and that she'll probably have to move out.Turns out Billie Jean had already been hiding Netta's letters to her mother and all three hide the last one annoucing Netta's homecoming.From then on it's a lot of bickering between them all and Earl(father) when he gets there that really about how all of them did nothing with their lives like Netta did.Earl throws money around and even asks Rose to take him back but she's too proud and he leaves.Netta comes home and finds out she needs her real mother after all and helps Billie Jean find get on the path to an education and dance career.The movie showed mainly what was the normal acting style in the 70's for blacks.Eyes popping,pronoucing every syllable,shouting and glaring at the other actor.This movie should be viewed by students that want to be actors to see how far we've come.Or have we? I said it was interesting because in the 70's every black movie was a drug/prostitute/pimp/police/detective plot movie. mojo2004

This film essentially revolves around a woman by the name of "Mama Rose" (Louise Stubbs) who has three teenage daughters named "Norma" (Gloria Edwards), "Ruth Ann" (Rhetta Greene), "Billie Jean" (Peggy Pettit). The first two were fathered by a man named "Earl" (Brock Peters) who Mama Rose kicked out of the house because he cheated on her. Billie Jean, on the other hand, had a different father who apparently ran off when she was younger and as a result Mama Rose has had to raise all of her children with her own mother who everyone calls "Mu' Dear" (Claudia McNeil). Also living in this small house is Mu' Dear's elderly male companion by the name of "Herbert" (Kent Martin) who pays half the rent. It should also be noted that Mama Rose also has a foster daughter named "Netta" (Leslie Uggams) who she took in when she was quite young and who is currently in college trying to become a teacher. In that regard, both Norma and Ruth Ann have acquired a great dislike for her because she is trying to make something of herself. Likewise, neither of these two young women like their half-sister Billie Jean either because she is trying to pursue her own dream of becoming a dancer--while they feel destined for a life of poverty and hopelessness. As a result, both Norma and Ruth Ann do everything they can to make life miserable for Billie Jean and diminish Mama Rose's love for Netta. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this turned out to be a deep and interesting film which sheds a glimmer of light upon the struggles of ordinary people within the black community trying to make it in urban America in the early 70's. Admittedly, there were some scenes which seemed a bit too gloomy at times and the film is rather dated as well. Even so, I thought it was worth the time spent and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.