Beloved
(1998)
This layered film, a labor of love from director Jonathan Demme and
star Oprah Winfrey, covers a lot of turf in its nearly three-hour running
time. Part slavery fable, part mother-daughter tale, part ghost story,
Beloved demands an audience's full attention from its dramatic, slightly
bewildering opening, when a family dog comes down on the wrong side of
some angry, unseen force. But Demme and his talented cast provide an unforgettable
payoff for those who surrender.
The film traces the life of Sethe (played in her middle years by Winfrey),
a former slave who has rebuilt what seems to be a peaceful, productive
life in Ohio. Yet through chilling, sparing use of flashback, Demme slowly
unveils, as does the Toni Morrison masterpiece on which the film is based,
the horrors of Sethe's former life, and the terrible event that led to
the haunting of Sethe's home.
While the horrors of slavery and the bloody event in Sethe's family
leave undeniable impressions, the film's brilliance is also evidenced in
smaller, equally satisfying ways. Rachel Portman's spiritual-influenced
score is as uplifting as it is haunting, and the glimpses of the post-slavery
African American world--as with a simple family outing to a local carnival,
or a ladies' sewing-and-gospel circle--make this a treat for the intellect
as well as the heart. The members of the cast, especially Kimberly Elise
as Sethe's struggling daughter and Thandie Newton as the mysterious title
character, are supremely affecting. --Anne Hurley - Amazon.com
DVD from Touchstone Video
starring Oprah
Winfrey, Danny
Glover
directed by Jonathan
Demme
Published: 14 January, 2003 |
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