Band Of Angels

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Based on a novel by Robert Penn Warren, this Southern potboiler stars Yvonne DeCarlo as Amantha Starr, the daughter of a wealthy Louisiana plantation owner. When her father unexpectedly dies, Amantha discovers that her father was deep in debt and the family is penniless, and she is forced to drop out of the exclusive girls' school she was attending. What's more, it is discovered that Amantha has a small amount of African-American blood, and under the laws she is to be sold into slavery in New Orleans. Amantha is purchased by Hamish Bond (Clark Gable), a dashing, wealthy, but mysterious landowner. While Amantha is at first terrified by her new situation, in time she grows fond of Hamish and becomes romantically involved with him. However, the outbreak of the Civil War leads to Union forces taking New Orleans; RauRu (Sidney Poitier), Hamish's trusted overseer, joins the Northern forces as the Rebels go down in defeat. RauRu hates Amantha for literally sleeping with the enemy, and Hamish for the corrupt system he represents, but his last remaining threads of loyalty prevent him from taking them prisoner. With his crops destroyed, Hamish must rebuild his empire from the ground up, and, as he joins forces with his former associate Capt. Canavan (Torin Thatcher), he must reveal a shameful secret to Amantha: he once earned his living as a slave trader. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 1
• Screen: Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
• Audio: Dolby Digital Mono
• Features:
  • Theatrical trailer
  • Languages: English & Francais
  • Subtitles: English (feature film only)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Clark Gable - Hamish Bond
       Yvonne De Carlo - Amantha Starr
       Sidney Poitier - RauRu
       Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. - Ethan Sears
       Patric Knowles - Charles de Marigny
       Carolle Drake - Michele
       Torin Thatcher - Capt. Canavan
       Andrea King - Miss Idell
       Ray Teal - Mr. Calloway
       Russ Evans - Jimmee
       Raymond Bailey - Stuart
       Tommie Moore - Dollie
       William Forrest - Aaron Starr
       Noreen Corcoran - Young Manty Starr
       Ann Doran

• Director:

  Raoul Walsh

• Book Author:

  Robert Penn Warren

• Screenwriter:

  Ivan Goff, Ben Roberts, Derek N. Twist, John Twist

• Cinematographer:

  Lucien Ballard

• Composer (Music Score):

  Max Steiner

• Editor:

  Folmar Blangsted

• Art Director:

  Franz Bachelin

• Costume Designer:

  Marjorie Best

REVIEW:

• A toned-down version of Robert Penn Warren's accusatory novel of plantation slavery, miscegenation, and black empowerment, Band of Angels nonetheless generated significant controversy upon its release. In the hands of studio veteran Raoul Walsh, the story is more a costume melodrama than a socio-political treatise. Fortunately, it's a well-mounted historical melodrama, with Lucien Ballard's cinematography aptly showcasing Franz Bachelin's set design and Marjorie Best's lavish costuming. Taboos of the time did not allow for mixed-race kissing, so white actress Yvonne de Carlo was cast as the slave lover opposite Clark Gable's plantation master. There was no compromise, though, in the casting of Sidney Poitier as the rebellious slave who turns the tables on Gable. Poitier is outstanding; his performance is the strongest link to the book's explosive social commentary. ~ Richard Gilliam, Rovi