Nightjohn (1996) (TV)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Charles Burnett

Writers (WGA):

Gary Paulsen (book)
Bill Cain (teleplay)

Release Date:

1 June 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Words Are Freedom

Plot:

Sarny, a 12-year-old slave girl in the ante-bellum South, faces a relatively hopeless life. Her chief...

Plot Keywords:

Slave | Reading | Plantation | Girl | Slavery

Awards:

2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Beau Bridges	...	Clel Waller
Gerald Brown	...	Joseph
Gabriel Casseus	...	Outlaw
Bill Cobbs	...	Old Man
Deborah Duke	...	Lethe
Shannon Eubanks	...	Fanny Bowen
Bruce Evers	...	Patroller #1
John P. Ford III	...	Arthur Waller
Monica Ford	...	Egypt
Alecia I. Gainey	...	Sarny (age 4)
Bill Gribble	...	Tom - Slave Trader
John Herina	...	Homer Waller
Antwan Isaac	...	Young Man
Allison Jones	...	Sarny
Carl Lumbly	...	John
Patty Mack	...	Evelyn
James Mayberry	...	Patroller #2
Robin Michelle McClamb	...	Sarnys Mother (as Robin McLamb-Vaughn)
Danny Nelson	...	Reverend Osee Rush
Tom Nowicki
Steven Sutherland	...	Alan Bowen
Lorraine Toussaint	...	Dealey
Joel Traywick
Jordan Williams	...	James G. Waller
Kathleen York

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some scenes of racial oppression and abuse.

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Sumter, South Carolina, USA

Company:

Hallmark Entertainment

A engrossing film with solid characters.

I found NightJohn's story and characters interesting. Actually, I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed the film, I didn't think I was going to a Hallmark film, but I gave it an 8. I am usually attracted to tough, headstrong characters and John is definitely in that category. John, a slave, defied the master as well as convincing his fellow slaves of the importance of knowledge, in a world that relies on ignorance to survive. The little girl was also a strong, believable character, as was the rest of the cast.

Beau Bridges did a fine job as the cold-hearted plantation owner, as well as all the other actors in the film. Burnett did a great job presenting the story with a right amount of realism and sentimentality, where many films fail, making them too sappy.

I gave it an 8 out of 10. NightJohn reminded me of The Color Purple, it had a similar style and mood. I was engrossed by the film up until the conclusion where the film became a little too unbelievable. If you loved The Color Purple, I recommend NightJohn.