In rural Alabama, Jane Richards (Dorothy Dandridge) starts her first day of teaching her first class. C. T. Young is her troublemaking student who keeps having to repeat each grade. She sees through his bravado right away and struggles to connect with him. Mr. Williams (Harry Belafonte) is the Principal.
This is adapted from a Ladies' Home Journal award-winning story. It is very sincere. This is Harry Belafonte's first theatrical acting credit and he gets to sing. For good or for ill, the most notable aspect is its lack of white people. At times, this film does touch on the racism of its day. It could also be seen as soft-peddling or ignoring the rising civil rights movement. My take is that this is looking at life behind the headlines although it is an idealized world. There is a shocking turn. The ending feels a little abrupt. The 69 minutes movie could use another 20 minutes to flesh out the closing section. Maybe there could be a push to suspend the kid or even expulsion. That could add some drama.
This is adapted from a Ladies' Home Journal award-winning story. It is very sincere. This is Harry Belafonte's first theatrical acting credit and he gets to sing. For good or for ill, the most notable aspect is its lack of white people. At times, this film does touch on the racism of its day. It could also be seen as soft-peddling or ignoring the rising civil rights movement. My take is that this is looking at life behind the headlines although it is an idealized world. There is a shocking turn. The ending feels a little abrupt. The 69 minutes movie could use another 20 minutes to flesh out the closing section. Maybe there could be a push to suspend the kid or even expulsion. That could add some drama.