Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Don't Believe the Hype, February 27, 2008
This recent ABC production was erratic; I'd like to see if the DVD restores several of the key passages that were cut out, including the memorable speech Beneatha gives to Asagai about what inspired her to become a doctor--in fact, the vital heart-to-heart Act III conversation between these two, which ought to run about 10 minutes, gets boiled down to 5 minutes! (Compare this sequence with the one featured in the superb AMERICAN PLAYHOUSE dvd, in which Beneatha and Asagai have a heated debate about the power of one person to make a difference and the future of Africa, and you'll see that a great deal of social conscience, and relevance to our own post 9/11 world, was sacrificed).
Repeatedly, the edits that were made in what I saw in the broadcast were puzzling. The decision to have Mama visit her drunk son at The Green Hat is dubious; in the play, Hansberry characterizes Lena Younger as a Christian woman who despises liquor and the nightlife of the Southside. The decision to show the whole family visiting the dream house in Clybourne Park is a cop-out--in the play, Lena is the only one to have seen the property, which makes Walter's anger and feeling that his dream has been "butchered" palpable. The Murchison-Beneatha relationship gets short-changed as well--where's the tense 2nd date scene, in which she spurns his crude advances and sees him as a churlish, shallow fool? I also disagree with the producer's decision to have Travis remain in the room for many scenes--what made the original play great was the fact that Travis never gets to see his parents bicker, which is why he idolizes his father, who seems can do no wrong. Thus, some dramatic irony gets lost.
Then, there is the truly odd decision NOT to have Beneatha adopt a full Afro (did the producers fail to see why Hansberry chose this simple yet powerful symbol in her original production???)--this abridgement was inexcusable. Consequently, the ABC production makes Beneatha look like an "assimilationist", despite her protests. What an absolute blow to the characterization of Beneatha, especially given how talented the actress here is.
The lead actors, with one notable exception, were quite good-- I was impressed with how Ruth and Asagai were developed, and I think Bill Nunn was superb in a minor and pivotal role as the naive Bobo. It's a shame this production doesn't include the comical nosey neighbor, Mrs. Johnson, who refers matter-of-factly to a newspaper story about the violence African-Americans face for moving into the suburbs. Indeed, the imminent threat the Youngers face for making such a bold move is watered down in this ABC production.
Lastly, anyone familiar with Hansberry's play should see that Sean P-Diddy Combs really drops the ball in the crucial "Pride" speech--he looks and sounds anemic compared to the riveting performances previously given by Poitier and Glover. The catharsis of his reversal, his rejection of Lindner's buy-out, just wasn't there.
(As a side note, the broadcast ran for three hours, and yet the actual film was just a little over 2 hours--couldn't ABC done the right thing and avoided such a crude abridgement of the dialogue, especially in Act III, and the jarring commercial breaks?)
Would I show this production to my high school students? Yes, but only in bits and pieces given the fact that the production deviates significantly from the original play. Students I've spoken to have expressed mixed reviews about this latest rpoduction.
Teachers, do the right thing and go with the AMERICAN PLAYHOUSE production instead, which is theatre at its finest and true to the spirit and intent of Hansberry's play.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
African-American Actresses Shine, May 5, 2008
This new production of the classic play is amazing for the treasure it presents: three of the finest performances one could ever see. Phylicia Rashad's Mama captures the essence of this stoic woman; Sanaa Lathan's Beneatha is sassy and bold; Audra McDonald once again proves that she is one of the finest performers working today. This film, an adaptation of the Broadway production, is well worth watching. Sean Combs, unfortunately, doesn't have the acting chops to carry the film as Sydney Poitier and Danny Glover do in earlier versions. But the saving grace is that Combs's Walter Lee is passable. With the strength of the female performances, this is definitely a production that satisfies.
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6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
It Is Okay To Like This Production, July 9, 2008
What happens when a film classic is revived? Sometimes it flops, but at other times it shines in a way not like the original but stands alone as a fine production. Such is what happens with Kenny Leon's revival of Lorraine Hansberry's "A Raisin in the Sun," which is a new version for a new audience while still remaining faithful to the original play. Having just seen again the original 1961 movie I was all set to not like the 2008 film. Not to worry. Mr. Leon has every reason to be proud of his work here. The three women are exceptional. Phylicia Rashad as the matriarch of the Younger family brings a youthfulness to the character of a woman still very much engaged in life and seeping with quiet strenth. Audra McDonald becomes the charcter Ruth, and Sanaa Lathan as Beneatha literally shines as the young twenty-year-old so full of ambition and hope for a better life. While Sean Combs is no Sidney Poitier and is not always completely believable as Walter, he redeems himself in the climatic scene when he delivers his "we just want to be good neighbors" speech to John Stamos, the spokesman for the white neighborhood where the Younger family will be moving to shortly.
There are nice touches added to this film not in the original version, if you have to compare the two. There are more scenes outside of the cramped, claustrophobic apartment where much of the action takes place. Additionally the voice over of Morgan Freeman reading the Langston Hughes poem "A Raisin in the Sun" is beautiful.
Incuded with the DVD is a version of the film with running commentary by Mr. Leon as well as interviews with practically everyone connected with the film. Much is made by all of them that this is a classic, that it is all about living one's dreams, the ability to love, etc., etc., etc., all of which is true. But there is an elephant in the room that these folks are too kind to mention: that at the heart of this movie is the ugly word "racism." Unfortunately too many white people in this country still do not want a black family moving into their neighborhood.
"A Raisin in the Sun" is in the same league as other American classics: "A Streetcar Named Desire, "Death of A Salesman" and "Long Day's Journey into Night." It will be produced anew for each generation, whether on stage or in film. Mr. Leon's version certainly gets an A-.
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