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IMDbPro

Drums o' Voodoo

  • 1934
  • 1h 10m
IMDb RATING
4.4/10
37
YOUR RATING
Laura Bowman and Theresa Harris in Drums o' Voodoo (1934)
Drama

In a small Southern town, Baptist preacher Amos Berry and a local voodoo priestess, Auntie Hagar, get together to thwart the aims of a pimp who has come to town to recruit a beautiful young ... Read allIn a small Southern town, Baptist preacher Amos Berry and a local voodoo priestess, Auntie Hagar, get together to thwart the aims of a pimp who has come to town to recruit a beautiful young girl, Myrtle Simpson. In addition, Auntie Hagar's grandson is aiming to marry the young gi... Read allIn a small Southern town, Baptist preacher Amos Berry and a local voodoo priestess, Auntie Hagar, get together to thwart the aims of a pimp who has come to town to recruit a beautiful young girl, Myrtle Simpson. In addition, Auntie Hagar's grandson is aiming to marry the young girl, which Auntie Hagar is also determined to stop.

  • Director
    • Arthur Hoerl
  • Writer
    • Augustus Smith
  • Stars
    • Laura Bowman
    • Augustus Smith
    • Morris McKenny
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    4.4/10
    37
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Arthur Hoerl
    • Writer
      • Augustus Smith
    • Stars
      • Laura Bowman
      • Augustus Smith
      • Morris McKenny
    • 4User reviews
    • 2Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos

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    Top cast

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    Laura Bowman
    • Auntie Hagar
    Augustus Smith
    • Elder Amos Berry
    • (as Gus Smith)
    Morris McKenny
    • Thomas Catt
    Lionel Monagas
    • Ebenezer
    Edna Barr
    • Myrtle Simpson
    Alberta Perkins
    • Sister Agnes Knight
    A.B. DeComathiere
    • Deacon Dunston
    Fred Bonny
    • Zero - Church Member
    Sam Baker
    James Davis
    • Brother Zumee
    Theresa Harris
    Theresa Harris
    Paul Johnson
    • August - Church Member
    Pedro Lopez
    • Larcon
    Bennie Small
    • Bou Bouche
    Trixie Smith
    • Sister Marguerite
    Cherokee Thornton
    Jimmie Cook
    • Voodoo Dancer
    • (uncredited)
    DeWitt Davis
    • Voodoo Dancer
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Arthur Hoerl
    • Writer
      • Augustus Smith
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      Author Bryan Senn, in his book "A Year in Fear", identifies this as the first film adapted from the work of an African American playwright, and as the first "blaxploitation horror movie" in film history.

    User reviews4

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    Decent Race Picture
    Drums o' Voodoo (1934)

    ** (out of 4)

    A sleazy man wants to turn a woman (Edna Barr) into a prostitute but her Baptist preacher uncle (Gus Smith) won't go for it. The only problem is that the man has something on the preacher and before long a voodoo priestess (Laura Bowman) gets in the middle.

    DRUMS O' VOODOO was based on the Augustus Smith play and it was another example of an early race movie. That means that the entire cast and most of the production crew were black but the one person who wasn't was director Arthur Hoerl. He only directed four films in his career with this here being his last but he did write well over a hundred movies including the infamous REEFER MADNESS.

    As far as this film goes, its basically shot like it was all performed on a stage and this here gives it a very stage-like quality. I must admit that there really wasn't anything special here outside of the cast all being black actors but at the same time the film was mildly entertaining for what it was. I thought the performances were a little better than you typically see in a race movie with the exception being Bowman who really goes over-the-top in her role.

    Bowman, who got the main credit all over the promotional material, draws a few laughs with her performance but at the same time she's entertaining. The film doesn't have any visual style and there's not much of a set design to be impressed with. As I said, it appears the film was shot on a stage and there's no doubt that there wasn't much money spent. The movie is basically all dialogue with an extremely long and drawn out ending where both sides (Christianity and voodoo) battle it out.

    The IMDB lists a 70-minute running time but I'm not sure how accurate that is. The print I watched was from Alpha Video and ran just 48-minutes and it certainly did seem like it was missing some footage with various jump cuts.
    helpful•6
    0
    • Michael_Elliott
    • Apr 23, 2018

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    Details

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    • Release date
      • May 11, 1934 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Louisiana
    • Filming locations
      • Atlas Sound Studios, Long Island City, New York, USA
    • Production company
      • Sack Amusement Enterprises
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 10 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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