Product Details

• Actors: *
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Studio: Showtime
• DVD Release Date: October 18, 2005
• Run Time: 212 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (66 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0000A5A11
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #20,060 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Feast Of All Saints" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Anne Rice’s The Feast of All Saints is a tale set in 1840’s New Orleans about "free people of color", who formed their own class at a time when the predominant role of blacks in society was as slaves. The film focuses on the ordeal of one young man named Marcel Ste. Marie (Ri’chard), who searches for the truth about his heritage. As he finds his individual path into the future, Marcel is fully aware that he is a child of African and European descent, but his story is uniquely American.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars beautiful movie, November 21, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Feast Of All Saints (DVD)

i [tried] to read this book, but couldn't get past the first 250 pages or so. while it was fascinating to read and i found the characters intriguing, i didn't have the TIME to sit down and read it through: the pacing was entirely too slow. so, i put it down and promised myself to 'come back to it,' wishing SOMEONE would adapt it to film so that i could have time for the actual STORY.

i was thrilled when i discovered this dvd at the local blockbuster.

the film, which outlines the lives of one french-creole-haitian family in louisiana who--by a series of questionable and irreversible decisions made through generations--enjoyed the privilege of being part of the 18,000-strong community of those both black and free in early-1800's louisiana, is paced WONDERFULLY.

i found that the film adaptation was true to what i'd read in the book and the characters, except for anna bella who i thought would look more african, were just as i had imagined them in my mind. this is def. the best book-to-film I'VE ever seen. the movie was beautiful to look at and of altogether intriguing subject matter. I WAS NOT DISAPPOINTED. on the contrary, because it was a made-for-tv movie, i was expecting quality far LESS than that which i actually saw. the relationships between the characters were believable, as was the plot of the film. it's about 3 1/2 to 4 hours long, but it certainly didn't feel that way. in fact, i was disappointed when it ended.

the acting was great (the accents, less so). and my goodness, the cast read like a who's who in black hollywood. forest whitaker, pam grier, jasmine guy, ruby dee, ozzie davis, james earl jones, eartha kitt, goodness...the list goes on. however, those that were newer to me, such as the films protagonist marcelle (robert richard) did as well--sometimes better--than the veterans.

i love historical movies, especially those about wwii and america in the 1800s. this is the best movie of the latter category i've ever seen. it neither over-dramatizes or under-dramatizes the situation of the people it depicts (which is more than what u can say for classics such as 'gone with the wind').

i'd recommend this one to anyone.

57 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Anne, they still butcher your books!, October 16, 2003

By 

Jameela K. Abdulghani (PA, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Feast Of All Saints (DVD)

I had an interest in this story both as a woman of color and as an Anne Rice fan. After reading this book about 6 years ago, I became very passionate about it being made into a film. When I heard finally that they were going make the film and how perfectly they cast the roles I became obsessed with seeing it. Yesterday when I finally saw it (I did not have Showtime when it came out), I felt they rushed it like a bad pornography. We learned too early in the film what Lisette's relationship to Marcel was or why Richard needed Marcel to "be a brother" to Anna Bella. They definitely did not capture the importance of Christophe to the entire society .I personally felt that they only needed the talented James Earl Jones at the very end and perhaps in the beginning.
EVERY actor in this film has proven thier talent over and over again in other films yet I think with the rushed dialouge they were not given the opportunity to show the talent they usually have. Each actor , later in the movie, had moments where they shone, but only Eartha Kitt , as usual, stood out from the moment that you saw her.
It amazes me to this day that Americans of all backgrounds still pretend that people of color, no matter how light they are, have no connection with the "white" people of this country. I had hoped that this movie would be so powerful that it would make all of us think. I think this was a good movie, but not as great as it could be.
To Anne Rice fans who read Queen of the Damned first and THEN saw the movie you will feel the same way about this movie.
...Why did they bother making this a two part series if they were going to gloss over important points?

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Anne Rice - why do you let them adapt on their own?, December 3, 2003

By 

Brett D. Cullum (Houston, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Feast Of All Saints (DVD)

Anne Rice has had a troubled history with her books turning into films. Unrecognizable adaptations of EXIT TO EDEN and QUEEN OF THE DAMNED are more frequent than quality films such as INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE. Here you have a half and half treatment of a novel that dealt with people who were half black and half white! Parts of it are true to the novel and its characters, and then parts will leave you scratching your head wondering where they got something. Anne Rice should step in more often and make sure these things are done right, but alas ... this one is close!

Pretty pretty sets, costumes, and actors bring to life a story of racial identity crisis in the South of the 1800s. New Orleans before the slaves were free had a third race of people who were neither black and slaves nor white and truly free. They lived on a fringe of society, and had to arrange their lives carefully or pay for the consequences. Educated bohemians they became the basis for the creoles!

It's an oft ignored subject of American history, and a beautiful story told in rich detail. The book has the luxury of its own pacing, and here the movie has to step quickly to keep up! So some of this feels rushed. But they got the right people! Famous black actors mix with unknowns, and they all come out fine and noble. Even if the dialogue or pacing does not always seem to be on their side.

But worth a look! Then read the far superior novel.