Pros: The acting in this film is just superb, stacked with great performances, from Whoopi Goldberg's star-making turn as Celie, the victimized wife who gains strength after meeting her abusive husband's mistress, Shug (Margaret Avery) to Oprah Winfrey as Celie's strong-willed daughter-in-law, Sofia to Danny Glover as Mister (Albert), the abusive husband. The screenplay was also solid along with the mechanics of a film, editing, cinematography, score and mise-en-scene.
Cons: Well, it is always difficult when a film begins with a child having a child and having it stripped from her arms. Celie was raped by her SPOILER: stepfather twice and had two children taken away from her by the time she was fourteen and then she's sent away to marry the abusive Mister, so there really are no good men in this film. And then, I found that Mister's decision to help Celie's sister, Nettie (Akosua Busia) re-enter the country just seemed odd as he's belittled Celie for years on end though she did eventually stand up for herself and leaves him but he still tosses her a bone anyway and while I love a happy ending, I just can't believe that Mister was finally nice to Celie.
Recommend: Yes though there is so much abusive throughout.
Grade: A
Side Notes:
-Goldberg, Avery and Winfrey were all Oscar-nominated for their roles here and they were each brilliant.
-Mister has three children but only his son, Harpo (Willard Pugh) gets a name, his daughters do not.
-Mister is a wretched father. After his first wife dies, he doesn't even brush his daughter's hair, leaving it in wretched tangles.
-Despite Celie never having children with Mister, there are always tons of children around.
-Celie opens her own shop selling her own sewing creations and inherits her father's house.
-This film was nominated for eleven Oscars but failed to win a single one, which is just shocking as it was an excellent film.
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