The Least Among You (2009)

Director:

Mark Young

Writer:

Mark Young (screenplay)

Release Date:

2009 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Tagline:

Pain is a holy angel...

Plot:

Inspired by a true story about a black college graduate forced to serve probation after the 1965 Watts...

Status:

Completed | See complete list of 12,000 in-production titles »

Status Updated:

21 May 2009

More Info:

See more production information about The Least Among You (2009) only on IMDbPro.

Note:

Because this project is categorized as being in production, the data is subject to change; some data could be removed completely.

Cast

Cedric Sanders	...	Richard Kelly
Lauren Holly	...	Kate Allison
Louis Gossett Jr.	...	Samuel Benton
William Devane	...	Alan Beckett
Cory Hardrict	...	Roscoe
John Brently Reynolds	...	Fred Leak
Starletta DuPois	...	Bessie Benton
Carter MacIntyre	...	James
Siena Goines	...	Ruth Kelly
Bernardo De Paula	...	Nick Giffuni
Nicolas Levene	...	Bill
Scott Waara	...	Prof. Powell
Ricco Ross	...	Marvin Kelly
Maddy Curley	...	Kimmy
Kelicea Meadows	...	Lisa Kreemack

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Witenuckle Films

Not bad but just OK

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

I saw this last month at the 2009 Palm Springs International Film Festival. This marks the debut feature film of writer/director Mark Young who was at my screening for an audience Q&A. following the 1965 Watts riots, Richard Kelly (Cedric Sanders), a young black man with a promising career ahead of him in the corporate world finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time and is sentenced to serve probation at an all-white seminary that is looking to break the color barrier. The president of the seminary is Alan Beckett (William Devane) who is not looking for black church leaders of the future but simply black followers to break the color barrier at his school and help woo financial support for a large campus building extension from a philanthropic benefactor. Kelly reluctantly agrees to attend so he can get it over with and eventually get back on track to his job offer in the corporate world with a large firm. He, of course is met with prejudice and resistance by the other students. He finds a friend and life coach in the school grounds caretaker and building janitor Samuel Benton (Louis Gossett Jr.) With Lauren Holly as professor and former missionary Kate Allison this has an excellent cast in Gosset, Devane and Holly but the script is a little weak and clichéd and Sanders in the lead role is over the top at times and very weak at other times. It's an interesting story based on the true life experiences of Rev. Dr. Charles Marks who was the inspiration for the Richard Kelly character and inspired writer/director Young to craft the story after he heard Marks speak at at young's church several years ago. It's a good film for a first time director but I wouldn't expect this to be a box office draw. It would make a good TV movie, especially during black history month, and I would expect to see it eventually on something like BET, Hallmark, AMC or the Lifetime movies channels and I would give it a 7.0 out of 10.