anybody else find this movie very offensive?

An avid fan of the remake with Lana Turner (the one most often shown), I watched the original just to make the comparison as well as view the wonderful Claudette Colbert. Perhaps of years of political correctness and programming, I couldn't watch this film objectively in short,I truly hated the original . While I'm aware that this was made in 1934, Delilah's character was portrayed with such a lack of dignity that all I could do is cringe each time watching this poor actress forced to interpret her character in such a "Yes Massa, Mammy" fashion. A complete simpleton. The relationship with the mothers was aloof (at least Bea's side of it), there seemed to be an indifference Bea displayed towards Delilah, sort of as "Oh my , you too having problems? So sad." Even at the death bed scene, Bea's attitude was " Oh my, she really is dying, how sad." The only thing I felt for both Bea and Delilah was utter contempt. The only reason to watch this film is for Fredi Washington's portrayal of Peola, which is truly heart breaking. In the remake you hated this character. In the original, you really did sympathize with her. A young black woman forced to live in shame with nowhere to run.

Both versions of this movie ticked me off. Not only Aunt Delilah (Aunt Jemima) but also the other offensive roles, like the Italian who can't pull a pen out of his pocket. Glad I live in the 21st Century.

Dwacon
http://blog.dwacon.com/

If you found this movie offensive, then it has done it's job. Many people are not able to understand the point of this movie. There are many subtle hints in the movie that point to it's purpose, which was to show the true nature of the American apartheid. The most obvious clue was Delilah's stereotypical portrayal of a black mammie. There are also some clues that are easy to miss if you're not paying careful attention. The earliest one in the movie is when Jessie calls Peola "black" and Delilah says "It's not your fault and it's not mine. It can't be our laws, so I don't know what it is." This is obviously a jab at the "separate but equal doctrine." Another clue was when there is a big party, and Peola and Delilah cannot attend it. Right after the party, Delilah and Bea part ways at the stairs, with Bea going up and Delilah going down into the basement, and that is an important use of imagery to show that even though they are "friends", they could never be equals because of the limits society imposes on that friendship. There is also a moment at the very end of the movie, when Peola cries at her mother's funeral. She is comforted by Bea and Jessie, but when they enter the car, Peola has to sit in the front seat of the limo, while the whites sit in the comfort cabin. Oh, and one more:

Delilah: "Teacher, is she passing?"
Teacher: "Um... oh yes, she is passing."

It is quite unfortunate that many people do not understand that this movie could never have seen daylight if it had denounced racism openly. It is unfortunate that people denounce this film the same way that Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is denounced for making them "feel uncomfortable." Even though we call ourselves open minded these days, we are still ignorant when it comes to dealing with race issues, to the point that anything that portrays racism other than in black and white (no pun intended :P), right and wrong, we call it offensive and declare that it should be censored.

If you have the special two-DVD set (the 1934 and 1959) movies, in the '34 movie there's commentary on racial issues in that era and how Hollywood wanted to portray black actors and actresses as safe black people who did not threaten white audiences and the tragedy of being mixed which only re-enforced that dating outside your race was wrong because the kids suffer, remember interracial marriage is only legal for 41 years - it's a MUST see & hear.

Also, this movie just got under the wire with the production code - The production stated no interracial dating, thus Peola Johnson (Fredi Washington) was a product of an interracial relationship the production code won on this one saying that her father was a light-skinned black instead of a white man, also the studio didn't think anything was demeaning about the foot rubbing scene, they were concerned that it implied a lesbian relationship between Beavers and Colbert (in the movie not IRL) but the foot rubbing scene was kept in to re-enforce the idea that black people were subordinate to white people.

Now my beef with the remake is that the studio claimed they could not find a black actress light enough to play the renamed Sarah Jane - IMO they didn't really look. Also fans and critics of the remake always complain that Sarah Jane was played by a white actress, untrue. Susan Kohner is hispanic and white, I don't know how she ID's but just because she is not black doesn't mean the fans nor critics have a right to define her - they didn't define Fredi Washington, why define Kohner. I'm not saying anything bad about Washington I'm a big fan of hers and read many of her articles from the people's voice but it's kind of a double standard.

I grumbled,sighed,(wanted to cuss but my mom was watching with me) through both versions of this movie. very hard to watch.

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there is no santa claus

It's not just you--it's completely offensive. That doesn't make it a bad movie, but it does make it a totally embarrassing one.


--celebrating my 10th year on imdb. woohoo!--

"helpless black woman"? What on earth gives you that impression? And who generously took whom in? Yur entire approach here is twisted.

Speaking from a white woman's vantage point, I must admit certain portrayals pushed some buttons: as another poster mentions, the white woman walks up the stairs to her room while the black woman walks down to hers...to name but one. However, the information provided by IMDB that Fredi Washington (Peola) was herself an African American and an avid civil rights activist, sheds considerable light on the subject and reminds us to think in terms of that particular period in time.