Soul Man (1986)

User Rating:

4.7/10   

Director:

Steve Miner

Writer:

Carol Black (written by)

Release Date:

24 October 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

A comedy with heart and soul.

Plot:

To achieve his dream of attending Harvard, a pampered teen poses as a young black man to receive a full scholarship.

Plot Keywords:

Role Reversal | White Male Pretending To Be Black | Racial | White Pretending To Be Black | Interracial

Cast

C. Thomas Howell	...	Mark Watson
Rae Dawn Chong	...	Sarah Walker
Arye Gross	...	Gordon Bloomfeld
James Earl Jones	...	Professor Banks
Melora Hardin	...	Whitney Dunbar
Leslie Nielsen	...	Mr. Dunbar
Ann Walker	...	Mrs. Dunbar
James Sikking	...	Bill Watson (as James B. Sikking)
Max Wright	...	Dr. Aronson
Jeff Altman	...	Ray McGrady
Julia Louis-Dreyfus	...	Lisa Stimson
Maree Cheatham	...	Mrs. Dorothy Watson (as Marie Cheatham)
Wallace Langham	...	Barky Brewer (as Wally Ward)
Eric Schiff	...	Booey Fraser
Ron Reagan	...	Frank

Also Known As:

The Imposter (USA) (alternative title)

Runtime:

104 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | USA:PG-13 ([#28314]) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-8 | Sweden:7 | UK:15 (video rating) (uncut) (1987) | UK:PG (original rating) (cut) | West Germany:6 | Singapore:PG | Australia:M (cable rating)

Filming Locations:

Wheaton College - 26 E. Main Street, Norton, Massachusetts, USA

Company:

Balcor Film Investors

Trivia:

In the scene where Mark first approaches Gordon as a black man, Gordon was originally supposed to believe Mark was going to mug him. An entire scene was filmed in which Mark played along with it and made Gordon sing "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot". It was taken out because it was thought, that although funny when filmed, it was inappropriate and racist.

Quotes:

Gordon Bloomfeld: A black Negro? He never told me he was a black Negro. Thank you. Boy, just when you think you get to know somebody. I'm gonna go confront him with this information right now. Wow... Mark... a black Negro!

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Totally Awesome (2006) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Theme from Shaft

Nothing Special, But Has a Beat.

C. Thomas Howell must get into Harvard, but the only way for him to do so is to become a minority. Sound impossible? Not quite. A fair little film that has Howell posing as a black man treads dangerous waters the whole way, but never does take itself too seriously and ends up being a somewhat charming little film. It is far from classic fare though. Leslie Nielsen, James Earl Jones, Rae Dawn Chong, Arye Gross and Julia-Louis Dreyfus all add humorous moments that help out Howell's cause. 2.5 out of 5 stars.