THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, April 22, 1996 TAG: 9604200060
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MAL VINCENT, MOVIE CRITIC
LENGTH: Medium: 69 lines
``CRY, THE Beloved Country'' is about two good men, one black and one white, who face a moral dilemma. Its very essence of goodness is a rare find in today's market.
While it is set in South Africa, it is without the moralizing and bitterness that has, quite understandably, been a part of that country's cinematic and theatrical record. It features a stunning performance from James Earl Jones and a surprisingly low-key one from Richard Harris.
Jones plays a pastor who makes the trek from his humble, rural church to the energetic, corrupt streets of Johannesburg to find his estranged son, Absalom. Not only do the urban complexities contrast with his quiet, country values, he learns that his sister has become a drunken prostitute and his son has confessed to the murder of the white man.
The murdered man is the liberal-minded son of the conservative colonialist played by Harris. What we have here are two grieving fathers - who put aside the strife of the outside world to understand each other.
The resulting film, the first produced in the ``new'' South Africa, celebrates the nation's present democratic status.
By keeping the quite poetic language of Alan Paton's 1946 novel, director-screenwriter Ronald Harwood, with the brave direction of Johannesburg native Darrell James Roodt, also maintains its stately, almost otherworldly dignity. The film never seems stilted or pretentious.
``Cry, the Beloved Country,'' deserves the classic status it has acquired since 1946. This is but the latest adaptation; the 1952 movie version was only the third film for Sidney Poitier. It also has been adapted for stage and opera.
The very simplicity of the plot is its strength. The ever noble Jones, in a role that well might have netted him an Oscar nomination, appears to bear the troubles of the country upon his stooped shoulders. Coupled with his looser, down-to-earth character in the excellent ``A Family Thing,'' this has been a good year for him.
Harris, on the other hand, is known for being flamboyant. An Oscar nominee for ``The Field,'' he has everything from hit records to Shakespeare readings to his credit. As James Jarvis, he has a refreshingly complex character that he plays with great honesty. He is not the usual villain; in fact, in this film, society is the only villain.
Perhaps the most meaningful line in the screenplay comes when a black man mutters, ``What frightens me is when the white man has turned to loving, perhaps the black man will have turned to hating.'' The statement is may be more chilling in 1995 than it was in 1946.
The two grieving fathers have a world of racial prejudice against them. Despite that, they come to understand and forgive each other, making ``Cry, the Beloved Country'' a healing, ultimately joyous film, that sends you from the theater with renewed hope. MEMO: MOVIE REVIEW
``Cry, the Beloved Country''
Cast: James Earl Jones, Richard Harris, Charles S. Dutton, Vusi
Kunene
Director: Darrell James Roodt
MPAA rating: PG-13 (some language, but highly moral)
Mal's rating: three stars
Locations: Naro Expanded Cinema, Norfolk ILLUSTRATION: MIRAMAX FILMS photo
James Earl Jones, left, and Leleti Khumalo, center, in ``Cry the
Beloved Country''
by CNB