Once upon a time the colored folks were all smiles and jolly. Well, not really but what the hell, even if a caricature it was a reflection of a part, if only a part, of their reality. (Most objectionable to me was the religiosity bordering on crude superstition--but there too you gotta go with the fantasy side of this thing.) We laughed a lot and really got a kick out of the songs and singing (especially the great renditions given by Ethel Waters-- who even did a jitterbug number), as well as the over-the- top acting by "Rochester" and Rex Ingram.Offensive to Black folks today? Sure, if they are totally invested in "presentism" (condemning people of the past with the standards of behavior we hold today). What would they want? To see more Black characters with a Ph.D. in hand? The manner of speech and social conditions in the movie depicted the life of the bulk of the Black masses at the time. What's missing, of course, is the presence of Whites and signs of the oppressive power exercised by Whites over them--not a single White person to be seen anywhere. This is, after all, a comedic fantasy--a Black fantasy that perhaps expressed a not-so-repressed vision of paradise for Blacks, in which they would be free of White folks and be able to sort out their lives by themselves and for themselves.

Little Joe (Eddie "Rochester" Anderson) is a warehouseman in a small African-American town, married to Petunia (Ethel Waters), who falls ill and dreams the Lord and the Devil are testing him by allowing him to win the Irish Sweepstakes and sending him a tempting visitor in the form and person (what form, what person!) of Sweet Georgia Brown (Lena Horne). He more or less proves himself, pulls through, and he and Petunia carry on with their poor but happy lives.It's directed by Vincente Minelli and produced by Arthur Fried, without a white person in the cast. Some of the songs have become familiar standards -- "Happiness is Just a Thing Called Joe," "Shine," "Takin' a Chance on Love," and snatch of Duke Ellington's orchestra playing "Things Ain't What They Used to Be." The plot and dialog are folksy, unsophisticated, and without pretense. Eddie Anderson and his gravelly voice are amusing in themselves. Ethel Waters has a brilliant smile that changes her features into something benign, although she was apparently not easy to get along with. She disliked Lena Horne intensely here, and later developed a fully blown hatred between herself and director John Ford in "Pinky." Lena Horne is exquisitely feminine, singing, "There's honey in the honeycomb. There's jelly in the jelly roll," as she caresses her bare arms and shoulders.I suppose it's possible to read racism into a film like this but it got past me entirely. The actors and musicians were probably overjoyed at the chance to appear in a major film. (There was a kind of parallel cinematic universe of all-black films at the time, but they rarely had the budget or skill of mainstream movies.) Further, it's difficult to imagine a cast of any color giving better musical performances. Louis Armstrong has a few minutes on screen as a devil's assistant and is given a chance to toot out one or two choice phrases. And Ellington's orchestra was one of the best in the business.It's all very rural and cornball, of course, just as "Young Mister Lincoln" is, and "State Fair," in which a love song is sung to a hog.Relax and spend an enjoyable hour and a half with the simple, but not simple-minded, folk of this neighborhood. It's a pleasant diversion.

Let's call it a deserved "10" but with a sense of trouble for one's conscience.In 1943 it was nearly impossible to consider any film with a predominantly African-American cast as serious by most Americans of Caucasian or non-African-American backgrounds. Typical fare from Hollywood was a series of stereotypes, usually for comic purposes. However there had been a few films that (even with the stereotypes) suggested more was there. King Vidor's HALLELUJAH in 1929 dealt with African-American revivalism. Two Broadway hits, O'Neill's THE EMPEROR JONES (with star Paul Robeson recreating the role of Brutus Jones) and THE GREEN PASTURES had been done with mostly African-American casts (Dudley Digges did play a critically important role in THE EMPEROR JONES, but he was an exception). The 1929 and 1936 versions of SHOW BOAT did deal with the "Jim Crow" south, and the issue of racially mixed marriages. The film of Fanny Hurst's novel IMITATION OF LIFE (1933) dealt with a young woman trying to pass for white and breaking her mother's heart as a result. GONE WITH THE WIND passed on the myths of how happy the slaves were in the South, but Hattie McDaniel's performance of "Mammy" was vivid and strong, and won the first Oscar for an African-American performer. Finally, in 1942, John Huston's film, IN THIS OUR LIFE, dared to suggest that a young African-American man could try to study law to enter the legal profession.When Vincent Minelli was assigned to do the MGM musical version of CABIN IN THE SKY, most insiders thought that it would be a flop. Minelli had never directed a film before, and was an unknown quantity in Hollywood's talent market. Actually he was a good choice - he was a veteran of Broadway musical productions, and was just the right person to work on a film based on a Broadway musical. It was his first film, and proved to be a great success.It think it is due in part to his determination to show what he could bring out of the musical, and also the equal determination of the cast, led by Ethel Waters (who played the lead "Petunia" on Broadway), Eddie Anderson ("Joe"), Lena Horne (as temptress "Georgia Brown"), John Bubbles ("Domino Johnson"), Kenneth Spencer ("The General/ Rev. Greene"), and Rex Ingram ("Lucifer Jr."). Other familiar faces crop up like Willie Best, Mantan Morland, Oscar Polk, Butterfly McQueen, Louis Armstrong (oddly wasted in a mostly comic speaking role), and Duke Ellington and his orchestra. It's hard to imagine this but this film effort had the cream of Hollywood's available African-American performers in it. And they wanted to show what they could do.The story is about the devotion of Petunia to her husband Little Joe, who is weak and constantly gambling. But he hopes to win a fortune to give Petunia the things she always wanted. Unfortunately he is also infatuated with Georgia, a sexy singer at the gambling house/night club he heads for. One night (while supposedly seeking forgiveness for his sins at church) Joe is lured to the nightclub into a dice game, and is shot by Domino. He is treated at home and the film goes from this point to it's conclusion with a battle between God's messenger, "the General" (always wearing white uniforms), and "Lucifer Jr." and his minions. Due to a technicality Joe is not to die, but is given six months more to show his wife's devotion is strong enough to put him permanently on the good and narrow path. Lucifer Jr. and his associates (including Morland, Armstrong, and Best) are determined to show Joe cannot change.The cast shows what they could do. Waters in particular has two songs that became standards: "Happiness is a Guy named Joe", by Harold Arlin and Y.I.P. Harburg, and "Taking a Chance On Love" by Vernon Duke from the original score. But Horne is allowed to sing as well (though one number was cut here but transposed elsewhere). Bubbles does his great dance and song act in the latter part of the film, in the number "Shine". Even Anderson (best recalled for being Jack Benny's foil as "Rochester") demonstrates singing in a duet with Horne, and dance in a number with Waters.I suppose my favorite though is Ingram. He's now the forgotten man in African-American film history, because he never had the degree of public attention that Paul Robeson received. But he appeared in the lead as "De Lawd" in the movie version of THE GREEN PASTURES, as "Lucifer Jr." here, as the genie in the Alexander Korda epic THE THIEF OF BAGHDAD (1941), and graced other films as well (as the gentle valet to Ronald Colman in THE TALK OF THE TOWN, where he starts crying at his boss's insistence at shaving off his distinguished goatee). Ingram, I feel, could play any kind of part. Given the paucity of good lead parts in his day, that he got three of them shows Hollywood and British producers thought well of him. Here he does not sing (I suspect he did not have the voice) but he is enjoying his wickedness throughout. He also has one of the best lines in the film - complaining of the lack of good ideas (in getting Joe's soul): he says that it's because the best idea men in Hell are currently in Europe (this being the fourth year of World War II). The film is actually quite entertaining to this day - although the stereotypes of crap shooting African-Americans is unsettling. But think of this point: this is the first film I know of from Hollywood where a black professional is shown who is not a minister! When Eddie Anderson is treated for his gunshot wound, the physician is black, and is not a stereotype.

Okay, continuing the reviews of movies that involved African-Americans in chronological order for Black History Month, we're now in 1943 with the release of Cabin in the Say. This was a very enjoyable movie with the three stars: Ethyl Waters, Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson, and Lena Horne playing their roles to the hilt. And what a supporting cast: Rex Ingram, Oscar Polk, Kenneth Spencer, Butterfly McQueen, Louis Armstrong, and Mantan Moreland. All involved made this one of the most entertaining and inspirational films I've ever seen. "Happiness is a Thing Called Joe" "Life's Full of Consequences" "Taking a Chance on Love" "Cabin in the Sky" "Honey in the Honeycomb" Classic songs all. Vincente Minnelli did fine for his directing debut. Plus there's Duke Ellington, the Hall Johnson Choir, and dancer 'Bubbles' John W. Sublett performing "Shine". Nice mix of humor and near-tragedy. Dorothy Dandridge's mother Ruby is listed in the credits as playing Mrs. Kelso. I think that's her in the church sequence talking about Joe repenting to the preacher at the door. And the guy tap-dancing to "Taking a Chance on Love" is Bill Bailey, Pearl Bailey's brother. Like I said, this was very enjoyable. So on that note, I highly recommend Cabin in the Sky. P.S. Only disappointment is we're deprived of Armstrong's number "Ain't It the Truth" that was cut from general release and supposedly is forever lost with only stills and his recording existing.