349:, as Mu'Dear. Scenes were re-written and re-arranged by the director, and her voiceover to cover up a "ridiculous" scene between Mu'Dear and Mr. Herbert was never recorded. Even more egregiously, "Efforts were made early in the filming to exploit material for sex and violence," she said. Franklin tried to have a scene where the young female character of Billie Jean disrobes in front of the camera removed; it stayed in the film, albeit without nudity. The poster for the film "showed a blow-up of Norma Faye's face, teeth snarling in mad-dog fashion, threatening Billie Jean with a knife. A moment which had lasted only five seconds had been lifted from the film to represent the supposed essence of the entire play.... This was blatant misrepresentation." After Franklin threatened to register her disapproval at every newspaper or television interview and speaking engagement, "In the next few days the illustration appeared without the knife. I thought that was the end of the matter; but a week later later the knife was back." Finally, "voice-overs had been used to erase all "fucks" to make the film eligible for a PG rating. ... I was urged not to mention to anyone that these cuts had been made, as people might think that they had missed something." The film was released in 1972. It had its world premiere at the
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everyone present is grown and married except Billie. Earl and Mama Rosie visit a nearby neighborhood park, where they remember their days of youth and discuss their bittersweet past. Earl suggests Rosie come with him to
Detroit, where he owns a shoe business, but Rosie rejects his offer and they part company. Back at home, Rosie and her mother discuss the old wounds which Earl's visit has resurrected.
263:, Norma Faye and Ruth Ann resent their mother's doting on her. The sisters try to trick Billie Jean into believing Netta will move in and take her room once she graduates. Netta does her best to rise above their insults and makes plans for Billie Jean to finish high school and to apply for college at the end of the school term.
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Mama Rosie's ex-husband Earl returns to town to visit the family with hopes to rekindle a relationship with Mama Rosie. He suggests Billie can make it by dancing in a bar in
Detroit. M'Dear's live-in boyfriend Herbert objects to the disrespectful conversation and vulgar language. Mama Rose says that
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Billie Jean, the youngest of three half-sisters, lives with her mother Mama Rosie and grandmother M'Dear. She desperately wishes to avoid the fate of her two sisters Norma Faye and Ruth Ann, neither of whom finished high school and are now stuck being single mothers. Billie Jean dreams of becoming a
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The elder sisters gang up on Billie Jean, holding her down, insisting Billie Jean needs to be put into reform school as they fail to understand and respect Billie's goals. M'Dear reminds Rosie of her past dreams and asks Rosie to allow Billie to fulfill her own dreams without interference. The film
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movement through the characters' stories, especially that of Mama Rosie as a single black mother struggling to support her family while refusing to allow her ex-husband to save her. "Davis gave notice that working-class black women—who were not prostitutes, drug users, or gun-toting heroines—had
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is a movie so filled with things it wants to say that sometimes the messages are lost in a confusion of storylines. A more disciplined movie might have been made by eliminating some of the material and organizing the rest, but I'm not sure it would have been a better movie or a more moving
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Melvin
Donalson wrote: "Studios were perhaps unenthusiastic about marketing a film that explored emotional and psychological dimensions of black womanhood, and perhaps audiences were still hungry for the trendy black urban action films that dominated the period." Roger Ebert of the
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described it as "a poor movie that makes it look as if there never had been a good play" and said that "I suspect that the real difference between the successful play and the failed movie lies in Ossie Davis's direction, which ranges from pedestrian to downright helpless."
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The role of black women in films was changing. "The role of black women in films, always previously confined to servant roles, with only white-looking women being allowed to be sexually alluring (and sinful), did not reflect their status in the black community."
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films in the 1970s exploited the stereotypes of
African Americans in the roles they played. The genre promoted popular images of black men and women using traits of extraordinary cool, sexuality, and violence.
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embraces some of these traits, in depicting the sexuality of the older sisters, and in a violent scene where the oldest sister pulls a knife on Netta, the foster sister. Roger Ebert stated that in
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as an assistant, but he did not. While she managed to get them to hire Peggy Pettit, rather than "a light-bright-damned-near-white actress", to play Billie Jean, against her wishes they cast
239:. The film explores issues and experiences of black womanhood in the 1970s, including how black women were depicted and common stereotypes of the period. According to Melvin Donalson in
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Mama Rosie compares her daughters unfavorably with the more ambitious Netta, a young lady from the neighborhood. When Netta comes home from college to visit Mama Rosie for
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331:, for a very small advance. The experience of making and marketing the film was an unhappy one for Franklin. Although the producer, Lee Savin, promised that
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Davis was not afraid to focus on realistic and sometimes uncomfortable issues. A central theme of his was the depiction of black women in that period.
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is a film that explores the intricate and sometimes painful connections between mothers and daughters."
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ends with Billie Jean leaving home to attend college despite protests from her envious sisters.
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successful dancer, but her mother and sisters belittle her attempts to improve herself.
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Davis explores the women's liberation movement that occurred contemporaneous to the
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would be involved in the project, King was dropped. She urged the director to hire
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In Search of Our
Warrior Mothers: Women Dramatists of the Black Arts Movement
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532:(1st ed.). Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press. p. 216.
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In 1971, Franklin worked on a feature-film adaptation of her play,
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is an
American family drama film with a screenplay by
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stories to tell that were provocative and relevant."
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822:Ain't I a Woman black women and feminism
570:Black Girl: From Genesis to Revelations
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730:Greenspun, Roger (November 10, 1972).
673:. University of Texas Press. pp.
635:. University of Texas Press. pp.
526:Forsgren, La Donna (April 15, 2018).
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1024:Cinerama Releasing Corporation films
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343:, who had been in the 1961 film
824:. South End Press. p. 161.
756:Greenspun, Roger (1972-11-10).
473:Black Girl: A Play in Two Acts
450:List of American films of 1972
166:Cinerama Releasing Corporation
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1009:Films directed by Ossie Davis
1004:American films based on plays
810:Black Directoris in Hollywood
654:. Citadel Press. p. 216.
481:Dramatists Play Service, Inc.
1039:English-language drama films
1029:1970s English-language films
1019:African-American drama films
876:AFI Catalog of Feature Films
669:Black Directors in Hollywood
631:Black Directors in Hollywood
510:Black Directors in Hollywood
308:Gloria Edwards as Norma Faye
241:Black Directors in Hollywood
703:Ebert, Roger (1973-02-06).
299:Louise Stubbs as Mama Rosie
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311:Loretta Greene as Ruth Ann
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567:Franklin, J. E. (1977).
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999:Blaxploitation films
958:Countdown at Kusini
758:"Black Girl (1972)"
437:A Raisin in the Sun
346:A Raisin in the Sun
128:Glenwood J. Swanson
78:Robert H. Greenberg
912:Films directed by
864:TCM Movie Database
808:Donalson, Melvin.
763:The New York Times
508:Donalson, Melvin.
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705:"Black Girl"
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914:Ossie Davis
784:"Lee Savin"
370:Black Power
237:Ossie Davis
72:Produced by
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989:1972 films
983:Categories
966:Crown Dick
942:Black Girl
870:Black Girl
859:Black Girl
848:Black Girl
837:Black Girl
796:2015-02-10
769:2015-02-10
716:2015-02-10
456:References
412:Black Girl
395:Black Girl
391:Black Girl
363:Black Girl
329:Black Girl
323:Production
290:as Mu'Dear
245:Black Girl
224:Black Girl
200:97 minutes
184:1972-11-09
61:Black Girl
22:Black Girl
401:Reception
233:1969 play
133:Edited by
81:Lee Savin
65:1971 play
853:AllMovie
471:(1971).
444:See also
357:Feminism
315:Ruby Dee
296:as Netta
213:Language
148:Ed Bogas
141:Music by
111:Ruby Dee
89:Starring
56:Based on
873:at the
862:at the
789:Variety
545:18 June
428:Variety
284:as Earl
216:English
205:Country
182: (
969:(1987)
961:(1976)
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937:(1970)
929:(1970)
741:3 July
612:2 July
586:2 July
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842:IMDb
743:2022
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588:2022
575:ISBN
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275:Cast
251:Plot
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
