Beloved

I was so disappointed that my copy of "Beloved" did not mention winning any film awards. I think this movie is one of the most underappreciated works of cinema. It should be deemed a major contribution to women's films and black films. I cried watching the film just because so much of it stirred my emotions.Critics have said that viewers could not relate to the Beloved character. I usually do not care for Thandie Newton. She's usually just a pretty face in damsel-in-distress roles. However, she really pushed the envelope with this role. It took a lot of strength to play a ghostly woman-baby. It takes tremendous ability to perform the googly-eyed, infantil manners that she makes. In the theater, I screamed twice, once at her entrance and once toward her exit. Additionally, I think Beloved the character may have been a metaphor for us African Americans. She wanted to know about her past. She wanted to know why she was separated from her family. She was one of a kind and shrouded in controversy.Others have said that the movie did not focus enough upon slavery as the book did. I am quite sure that if more of the horrors of slavery were shown, then people of all races, but especially non-African-Americans, would be scared off and make illogical claims about "playing the race card." This movie does a fantastic job in showing the catch-22 placed upon 19th-century Black American women. It shows how even working-class communities can punish their own members for not enacting middle-class values. Further, if the viewer looks carefully the racism of the time is continuously hinted at throughout the film.Oprah plays well against her persona. She's the only African-American female billionaire, yet she's playing a poor ex-slave. She is usually seen in glamourous outfits, yet here she and the other characters wear no makeup. On her show, she's portrayed as in control of the world. In this film, her mental state is shattered and even her body can't control itself. Oprah is not a mother, yet she does a wonderful job in showing a mother's unending love for her daughters. I love all of Kimberly Elise's films, Set It Off, Bojangles, you name it. This actress has the Midas touch and this film is one more example of that.This film, despite the computer graphics, showed the beauty of Midwestern flora and fauna. The actresses wore rich indigo dress and ornate hairstyles. This was a strong period piece. The script is filled with rich dialogue. "Your love is too thick, Sethe." "Love is or it isn't. Thin love ain't no love at all." "She my best thing." "No, you're your best thing." "Sometimes I think she was my sister and sometimes I know she was.""Beloved" is becoming one of the most read texts in American English classes. I think this film will help students understand a rigorous author like Morrison. However, because this movie only shows a slice of the book, students will still have to do their reading and not just rely on the film.

Great movie. I was disappointed the poetic description of the pink square on the quilt was left out of the movie. I’ve seen the movie twice and also read the book. It is not light fare.Not for the faint of heart. Lots of trigger warnings for Graphic (heartbreakingly, horrifically graphic) SA, V, and a real look at slavery and its effects and the effects of living in an unreal and cruel society. If that bothers you, you’re not going to like this movie or the beautiful book.If you love seeing a unique, honest, and poetic treatment of humanity in all its forms, great cinematography, and also like using your brain, this movie (and especially the book) might be for you.

It's really too bad that this movie isn't appreciated more. Many were off-put it seems by its brutality, darkness and ghost-story feel. It blows my mind that so many critics dropped the ball on this one. I've never read Toni Morrison's celebrated novel, but I could immediately tell from the first few scenes that the film was rather faithful. It has detail and intensity, and a depth that is characteristic of great literature. From the first ghost scene with the dog I was immediately enthralled and curious as to what this story was about and what it was trying to say, and just as importantly, how it was saying it. This story works on a deeper level. Morrison's use of ghosts to reflect internal workings is terribly inventive and interesting. The ghosts and stuff, starkly beautiful and strange, captured through Demme's powerful eye, do not need to be read as real or not real. Sure, they have a power of themselves over the viewer, which Demme does wonderfully. But, my point is, this is based on a book, and the ghosts more than anything are metaphors which paint and convey the internal pain and suffering of the truth. This film wonderfully shows us that somethng like slavery and rape can't just be forgotten or healed easily or quickly. These horrors, true horrors, persist through time and space, they are ghosts that move through history. And the more we suppress them the more powerful they become. That in itself, even without respect to Morrison's impassioned story about the survival of the American African slave, is in itself, a deep and profound message. "Beloved" is filled with these sometimes horrible truths, but it never forsakes humanity, it never levels an accusatory finger. The brutal truths are also wonderfully tempered with tender moments. One of the best in my opinion being the spiritual gathering of freed slaves, an eloquent vision of the power of love and community. If you don't get what I'm saying, you will as you get further and further into this film. Movies and books that work on this level deserve our attention. And despite what Leonard Maltin writes, Winfrey's performance is awesome. This movie simply demands more out of us. Give it and you will be rewarded with a great fusion of the ugly and the beautiful in search of deeper spiritual truths.