The very Caucasian looking Mel Ferrer plays a light skinned black man who graduates from medical school with honors and after an internship at a mainly black hospital ends up with a career in a Peyton Place like New England town. He passes for white for decades, barely avoiding discovery on several occasions. As his young son grows up, he makes pals with a darker black schoolmate and without realizing the truth of his own background. No secret remains hidden forever, and the naive children must deal with the revelation of their own identity.
When Ferrer is denied the opportunity to serve in the military during World War II as a medic, he must deal with a daughter who referred to her daughter who referred to her brother's friend as a coon, and the brother who looks all over his hands and face for any sign of blackness. They forget to realize that they are no different than they were before. As Ferrer's black mentor had told him years before, .You know what they say. If you're white, you're alright. If you're brown, then hang around. But, if you're black, step back.
Even up north, he finds strong elements of racism. A nurse purposely drops a pint of blood simply because she believes it came from a black man after being told by Ferrer that it is just as good as white man's blood. A minister recalls the name of Ferrer's mentor and realizes that he must have made a mistake simply because the doctor he met was black. Then, servers at a church social refuse to serve as long as a black man is in their presence.
The conflict is there for an outstanding drama on the lines of the main- stream "Intruder in the Dust" and "Pinky", and the more obscure "Bright Sun" and "Take a Giant Step", as well as "The Lawless" and "The Ring", which focus on Latin Americans. This is an excellent step in the movement towards exposing minority issues on film in a sensitive light. The film makes many real important comments, the most obvious to me as a Caucasian is that identity is an individual characteristic, the racial identification an image for society to assist in unity, and the brain and heart the connecting force that entwines us all. Simply acted, realistically written and no qualms or apologies for daring to stand up and reveal the heart of the important truths.
Canada Lee, the ground-breaking black character actor, stands out in a small but vital role as the police officer the young son encounters in New York's Harlem when he sets out to find himself. The final may seem a bit too perfect for American small town during this time, but it does give a sign of hope that has been extended through the fight for equality that culminated in Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech and is still being discussed fifty years later.
When Ferrer is denied the opportunity to serve in the military during World War II as a medic, he must deal with a daughter who referred to her daughter who referred to her brother's friend as a coon, and the brother who looks all over his hands and face for any sign of blackness. They forget to realize that they are no different than they were before. As Ferrer's black mentor had told him years before, .You know what they say. If you're white, you're alright. If you're brown, then hang around. But, if you're black, step back.
Even up north, he finds strong elements of racism. A nurse purposely drops a pint of blood simply because she believes it came from a black man after being told by Ferrer that it is just as good as white man's blood. A minister recalls the name of Ferrer's mentor and realizes that he must have made a mistake simply because the doctor he met was black. Then, servers at a church social refuse to serve as long as a black man is in their presence.
The conflict is there for an outstanding drama on the lines of the main- stream "Intruder in the Dust" and "Pinky", and the more obscure "Bright Sun" and "Take a Giant Step", as well as "The Lawless" and "The Ring", which focus on Latin Americans. This is an excellent step in the movement towards exposing minority issues on film in a sensitive light. The film makes many real important comments, the most obvious to me as a Caucasian is that identity is an individual characteristic, the racial identification an image for society to assist in unity, and the brain and heart the connecting force that entwines us all. Simply acted, realistically written and no qualms or apologies for daring to stand up and reveal the heart of the important truths.
Canada Lee, the ground-breaking black character actor, stands out in a small but vital role as the police officer the young son encounters in New York's Harlem when he sets out to find himself. The final may seem a bit too perfect for American small town during this time, but it does give a sign of hope that has been extended through the fight for equality that culminated in Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech and is still being discussed fifty years later.