This film is an absolute classic for the Black historical representation of the post-Civil War South after Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation as this government declaration of racial equality and freedom of the slaves wasn't enough to convince White settlers to comply amicably. Sadly, this new DVD that was released this year cuts out an entire movie - 90 minutes - down to a 96 minute runtime from the VHS version which was 186 minutes! It's an absolute tragedy to this Black History classic as the main import of the film's message is carried in those missing 90 minutes!
Muhammad Ali is cast in the role of Gideon Jackson, an ex-slave who returns to the estate of his once slave-owner, now absent, and rallies several Black ex-slaves as well as many White settlers to combine their revenue and purchase the property and land through official channels. Jackson rises in esteem and societal importance and is eventually elected as a U. S. senator during the Reconstruction Era.
Many interesting tidbits of history are imbedded in this film gem narrated by Ossie Davis as we're reminded the first free Blacks were members of the Republican party whilst the Klu Klux Klan was primarily affiliated with the Democratic party. Somehow this information has been forgotten throughout the years as today's climate shows more of a reversal of African American party preference being predominately Democratic in modern times.
The crux of the film shows the fortitude and bravery of not only Black people, but the Whites who joined forces with them in equality, organization and amity, showing the narrowminded early American people the possibilities of this great nation, originally intended by its founding fathers. Though the conclusion of the film seems to be sad and dismal, I see it more as a testament to the strength of solidarity between Blacks and Whites who take a stand against injustice and wickedness, even at the expense of their own lives. Justice and human rights are worth this struggle and fight as they echo the heart and essence of the bedrock of creation from the smallest nooks of the earth to the farthest reaches of the galaxy.
I highly recommend this film but only in its VHS form as the DVD is shorn of any real value and worth by the exclusion of an entire movie, the 90 minutes that was suspiciously excised from this classic. This movie will go down in history as Ali's best, most meaningful work on film!
