The Green Pastures
(1936)
90 or 93 mins | Allegory | 1 August 1936
Cast:
Rex Ingram, Oscar Polk, Eddie Anderson [ More ]Directors:
Marc Connelly, William KeighleyCinematographer:
Hal MohrEditor:
George AmyProduction Designers:
Allen Saalburg, Stanley FleischerProduction Company:
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.The play on which this film was based won the 1930 Pulitzer Prize and ran on Broadway for five years and 1,779 performances. The Hall Johnson Choir sang portions of twenty-five spirituals in the film. The onscreen credits list Rex Ingram and William Cumby separately for each role they play. Although a HR production chart lists actor John Alexander in the cast, his appearance in the released film has not been confirmed. A NYT article notes that the cost of the film was in excess of $750,000. Newsweek indicates that Connelly was paid $100,000 and given a royalty guarantee for the screen rights to his play, and claims that it was the "highest price ever paid for screen rights." According to the file for the film in the MPAA/PCA Collection at the AMPAS Library, The Green Pastures was banned by censors in a number of countries, including Italy, Latvia, China, Palestine, Finland, Australia and Hungary. Censors in England reportedly inserted an explanatory foreword and eliminated many lines of dialogue. Contemporary sources indicate that the picture was one of the top moneymaking films of 1936 and was one of the top ten on the lists of both FD and NYT, as well as the National Board of Review's list of Best American Films. The play was presented on television three times during the 1950s. ...
The play on which this film was based won the 1930 Pulitzer Prize and ran on Broadway for five years and 1,779 performances. The Hall Johnson Choir sang portions of twenty-five spirituals in the film. The onscreen credits list Rex Ingram and William Cumby separately for each role they play. Although a HR production chart lists actor John Alexander in the cast, his appearance in the released film has not been confirmed. A NYT article notes that the cost of the film was in excess of $750,000. Newsweek indicates that Connelly was paid $100,000 and given a royalty guarantee for the screen rights to his play, and claims that it was the "highest price ever paid for screen rights." According to the file for the film in the MPAA/PCA Collection at the AMPAS Library, The Green Pastures was banned by censors in a number of countries, including Italy, Latvia, China, Palestine, Finland, Australia and Hungary. Censors in England reportedly inserted an explanatory foreword and eliminated many lines of dialogue. Contemporary sources indicate that the picture was one of the top moneymaking films of 1936 and was one of the top ten on the lists of both FD and NYT, as well as the National Board of Review's list of Best American Films. The play was presented on television three times during the 1950s.
One fine Sunday in the Louisiana delta, a black preacher, Mr. Deshee, tells Bible stories to his Sunday school class. In order to help the children visualize God and heaven, he describes them in terms of a Southern fish fry: De Lawd looks exactly like their preacher, and except for their wings, the angels look exactly like members of the congregation. De Lawd creates too much firmament one day, so he creates the sun and earth to drain it away. After realizing what good farmland he has made, De Lawd creates Adam and Eve to live on it. Sadly, De Lawd is disappointed by Adam and Eve's descendents. After punishing Cain for Abel's murder, De Lawd leaves the Earth alone for a while, but the next time he returns, he again finds a wicked world. Because he believes that Noah, a small town preacher, is an exception, De Lawd orders him to build an ark and then sends the rains down to destroy the rest of humanity. Soon, however, things have gotten bad again and De Lawd decides that man does not have enough to do, so he gives Abraham's descendents the land of Canaan and sends Moses to lead them out of Egypt. Moses and Aaron secure the release of the Hebrew slaves only after confounding the Egyptian pharoah with their magic tricks and killing his son. The Israelites reach the promised land, but De Lawd gets so disgusted with his children that he renounces them. Not even a delegation of angels can convince him to take them back. Yet a soft voice from Earth reaches De Lawd, and ...
One fine Sunday in the Louisiana delta, a black preacher, Mr. Deshee, tells Bible stories to his Sunday school class. In order to help the children visualize God and heaven, he describes them in terms of a Southern fish fry: De Lawd looks exactly like their preacher, and except for their wings, the angels look exactly like members of the congregation. De Lawd creates too much firmament one day, so he creates the sun and earth to drain it away. After realizing what good farmland he has made, De Lawd creates Adam and Eve to live on it. Sadly, De Lawd is disappointed by Adam and Eve's descendents. After punishing Cain for Abel's murder, De Lawd leaves the Earth alone for a while, but the next time he returns, he again finds a wicked world. Because he believes that Noah, a small town preacher, is an exception, De Lawd orders him to build an ark and then sends the rains down to destroy the rest of humanity. Soon, however, things have gotten bad again and De Lawd decides that man does not have enough to do, so he gives Abraham's descendents the land of Canaan and sends Moses to lead them out of Egypt. Moses and Aaron secure the release of the Hebrew slaves only after confounding the Egyptian pharoah with their magic tricks and killing his son. The Israelites reach the promised land, but De Lawd gets so disgusted with his children that he renounces them. Not even a delegation of angels can convince him to take them back. Yet a soft voice from Earth reaches De Lawd, and he realizes that mercy can be earned through suffering. De Lawd then wonders if this means that even God must suffer, and his question is answered by the life of Jesus Christ. Sunday school is over, and the children file out into the countryside that looks so much like heaven.
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