On O List of Movie Reviews
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Once Upon a Time...
When We Were Colored (1995)
Rate:
9
Viewed:
10/20
10/20:
Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored is a powerful slice-of-life film about black folks growing up in
rural Mississippi during the Jim Crow era.
Based on Clifton Taulbert's eponymous autobiography, the writing is smooth, calm, and humble. There's no plot to
speak of, but the characters are rich and well-developed. Many parts of how they lived back then are recounted
which are now no more because of advances in technology.
Mainly, Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored is about black people doing what they can do to survive
the dark times; eventually, changes came, but they had to wait for so long. Hence, the characters are separated
into two: those who decided to be patient and stayed on and those who couldn't take it anymore and left for the
North to pursue opportunities.
What's impressive is the wholesome feel the cast brings to the table. There are many outstanding black role
models, and I love the community they've built which makes life in Glen Allan more bearable for the black
residents. It's truly the power of the film. Singling out anyone is difficult because the performances have
been uniformly excellent, but I have to mention two actors who are special and they're Al Freeman, Jr., and
Leon. It's nice to see the inclusion of three legends from the Blaxploitation period: Bernie Casey, Isaac Hayes,
and Richard Roundtree.
All in all, Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored is a must-see.