"THE SIDNEY POITIER COLLECTION"
DVD Review
by Kevin Carr
| MOVIE: *** (out of 5 stars)
DVD EXPERIENCE: ** (out of 5 stars) Not Rated and PG Studio: Warner Bros. Own it on DVD January 27 Check out the Warner Bros. official site Back to DVD Review Home |  |
A fitting release from Warner Bros. this Black History Month is a box set with four classic films from Sidney Poitier’s repertoire. As one who grew up in the 70s and 80s, I was not around for much of Poitier’s groundbreaking films, and this is a fine way to look back at the cinematic history of this powerful and historic actor.
The Poitier films in this collection each deal with social elements of the day that are sometimes alarmingly relevant to today’s world. It also includes Poitier’s second film he directed, “A Warm December,” so the four-movie box set offers the range of his talent.
The first film in the collection is “Edge of the City” from 1957. In the film, Poitier plays a laborer at the dockside railyards, where he strikes up a friendship with a white worker, played by John Cassavettes. Together, they just want to work a job, but in the face of corruption on the waterfront, they run into problems with their interracial friendship. Well-acted and hard-hitting, this films gives an interesting window into the racial strife that came about in the 50s.
The second film is the 1965 award-winner “A Patch of Blue.” Poitier plays Gordon Ralfe, a kind gentleman who befriends Selina, a blind girl (Elizabeth Hartman) he meets in the park. Selina has been raised by bigots, who also abuse her and make her work as a slave in their house. Soon, Gordon and Selina find feelings for each other, and even though she cannot see, they must also overcome their racial barrier.
“A Patch of Blue” is probably the best film in the collection, giving a tender love story with the relatively newly explored subject of race in American cinema. It gets a bit preachy and presents Selina’s family as straw men, but the film is propped up by Poitier’s acting and his brilliant co-star Hartman, who went on to win a Golden Globe for her performance.
The third film is 1957’s “Something of Value,” featuring Rock Hudson as Peter McKenzie as a white man in colonial Kenya on the even of the bloody Mau Mau uprising. Poitier plays Kimani, Peter’s life-long friend who becomes heavily involved in the uprising. They were like brothers, but the racial strife in Kenya pits them against each other. In the bloody violence of the day, Peter tries to reach the sensitive side of Kimani.
This film offers a unique experience for the modern viewer to see that the problems in Africa have been happening for decades, and we can see that the violence on that continent has deep-seeded roots.
The final film in the set is “A Warm December.” Poitier plays Dr. Matt Younger, a widower who is vacationing in London with his daughter. There, he meets Catherine (Esther Anderson), an ambassador’s daughter with a medical secret. Soon, Matt and Catherine fall in love, and they try to reconcile their differences.
As Poitier’s second directorial effort, “A Warm December” is impressive, but not spectacular. It’s a simple love story at heart, but sometimes the techniques and styles of that era – like some crash zooms and overbearing music – don’t quite translate for the modern viewer.
The special features vary from disc-to-disc, although most of the films only offer the original theatrical trailer. “A Patch of Blue” is the only disc with some more meat, which includes a commentary track by director Guy Green, a stills gallery and a look at the Sidney Poitier legacy.
