Sounder

It's 1933 Louisiana. Poor negro farmer Nathan Lee Morgan (Paul Winfield) has a hound dog named Sounder. He's bitter about the hard times and his wife (Cicely Tyson) tries to comfort him despite their kids are going hungry. In desperation, he steals from the smokehouse and Sheriff Charlie Young arrests him. That's when a deputy shots Sounder. Nathan is sentenced to a year of hard labor and the family has to struggle without him. Rita Boatwright is the kind white lady. Oldest son David Lee sets off with Sounder to find his father. Kind teacher Camille Johnson wants David Lee to stay with her and attend her school.

Cicely Tyson's stardom is a little before my times. I've seen her in many things but I've never seen her in something like this. She is amazing. There are several scenes where her diminutive statute belies her powerful presence. She reveals an easy dignity, quiet strength, and endearing vulnerability. The pacing can be leisurely at times but it is never boring. The setting is perfectly southern. It presents a time and a place. The family has a desperation and a loving bond. The side characters are all great. The sheriff is a man of rules in a world of racist rules. The kind white lady falters in the face of power but recovers to do the right thing. This movie feels real and the realism accentuates the emotional power. There is nothing more powerful than the reunion. This is not a big story but it is a powerful drama of the heart.

"Sounder" is one of the essential American dramas set in the deep South during the Depression era of the early 1930s, and while it has been released more than 45 years ago, it's one of those rare films which absolutely feel like they haven't aged a single bit ever since their release. It has been way ahead of its time, considering that movies with pre-dominantly African-American cast members were reserved for action and blaxpoitation films back in the days, and it also broke ground for the fact that it was the first film to feature two Oscar-nominated performances from African-American actors (namely Cicely Tyson and Paul Winfield). Both of them absolutely deserved their nominations, though in the case of Cicely Tyson, her breathtaking, vibrant and emotionally devastating performance leaves no room for arguing that anyone else should have won the Oscar for Best Actress that year. Another standout is Kevin Hooks, who gave one of the best child performances I have seen in any film from the 1970s. "Sounder" has become famous for one incredibly emotional scene, a scene everyone knows which one is meant when seeing it, and it's a scene which absolutely turns this into something beautiful. The film relies mainly on character development and thus may be considered too slow by some audiences, which may also be the reason why it's so rarely mentioned anymore nowadays, but in my opinion, it's one of the best films dealing with racial tensions, and one of the best films from the early 1970s.

Director Martin Ritt and the cast and crew of this movie have left a great legacy in this simple but moving story of a family's love for one another in the face of great adversity. The family does not succumb to bitterness or hatred but they persevere with hope and great faith in what they can overcome. The story: during the Depression, a family breadwinner is arrested and sent to a year's hard labour for a minor misdemeanour. I saw this movie almost 40 years ago and it made a deep impression. Almost everyone I spoke to who saw it admired it and the reviews were excellent but for some reason, it has been forgotten. I saw the movie again on Martin Luther King Day and rediscovered a story with great universal appeal. The landscape cinematography of Louisiana enhances the movie. Cicely Tyson and Paul Winfield are the stars of the film along with Kevin Hooks as the eldest son. The music is stark with the lyrics of a spiritual and the strumming of a stringed instrument. We witness the cruelty of a heartless town and the courage of a friend who is moved to help. In the end, wounded and battered, the family carry on with great love and respect for one another. This movie is a strong statement because of the great character acting. It is a great testament to the human spirit.

In 1969 William H. Armstrong, a white 9th grade history teacher at Kent School in Connecticut, published 'Sounder', a short but deeply moving children's novel about the struggles of black sharecroppers in Louisiana during the depths of the Great Depression. Instantly recognized as a classic, 'Sounder' was awarded the John Newberry Medal and the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award in 1970. The book also attracted the attention of Martin Ritt, the once-blacklisted producer-director of 'Hud', 'The Molly Maguires', 'The Great White Hope' and a host of other socially committed movies. Ritt recognized that 'Sounder' transcended its coming-of-age theme by providing a powerful depiction of the Jim Crow South at its most oppressive: a part of history that had never been adequately represented in American cinema (though the story of white poverty in the Great Depression had been told in John Ford's 'The Grapes of Wrath', 1939). Ritt bought the film rights, sold Fox producer Robert B. Radnitz on the project, and hired African-American screenwriter Lonne Elder III to work with Armstrong in adapting 'Sounder' to the screen. Shot on location in East Feliciana and St. Helena parishes (just north of Baton Rouge), 'Sounder' stars Paul Winfield as Nathan Lee Morgan, Cicely Tyson as his wife, Rebecca Morgan, and Kevin Hooks as David Lee Morgan, their 13-year-old son who must assume the role of paterfamilias after his father is sentenced to a year in a work camp for stealing a ham to feed his starving family. (The title of book and film derive from the name of David's beloved dog, Sounder.) Beautifully photographed by John Alonzo ('Vanishing Point'; 'Harold and Maude'), 'Sounder' boasts a pitch-perfect script that avoids bathos; terrific acting; a great period blues soundtrack by Taj Mahal (who also has a small role in the film); and an uplifting message of black pride, determination, and endurance. Nominated for a Golden Globe and four Academy Awards (including Best Picture), 'Sounder' garnered excellent reviews—although some critics found the film too safely "liberal" because it was a family-oriented period piece. VHS (1998) and DVD (2002).

Tale of a sharecropping family in 1933 Louisiana and what happens when the father (Paul Winfield) is sent to jail for stealing food to feed his family. It also deals with the oldest son (Kevin Hooks) coming of age. Sounder, BTW, is the name of the family dog.

Quiet, slow but ultimately very moving tale of a poor black family in the 1930s. There's some beautiful shots here (it was shot on location in Louisiana) and very little dialogue and only occasional music. I must admit I was getting a little bored at first--I wanted the story to MOVE! But the film slowly grew on me and, after half an hour, I was hooked. The images tell the story along with some very moving Oscar-nominated performances by Winfield and Cicely Tyson (as his wife). Even young Hooks (who was only 14 when this was done) is quite good. The film slowly works on you and, by the end, I was crying my eyes out--But don't worry--it DOES have a very happy ending.

This was a HUGE hit in 1972. It was one of the few G-rated films dealing with a black family. Unlike most other 1970s black films it had no drugs, violence, sex or swearing--this was a true rarity back then. And white, black, young and old audiences loved it. It works on all levels. It was also nominated for Best Picture. It didn't win anything but the fact that it was nominated was enough. The cast went through hell making it. I remember, in an interview, Winfield said it was brutally hot during the whole shot, the cast was eaten alive by mosquitoes and he caught a TERRIBLE case of hay fever from all the pollen. It's to this whole casts credit that they all give out good performances. Sadly...this film has been forgotten. That's too bad...it should be rediscovered.

There was a sequel 3 years later (with a different cast). It was "Sounder Part 2" but it seems nobody has ever seen it. But don't miss this one. A perfect family film.