Lost in the Stars | |
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![]() Theatrical poster | |
Directed by | Daniel Mann |
Written by | Alfred Hayes Maxwell Anderson (play) Alan Paton (novel) |
Produced by | Ely A. Landau |
Starring | Brock Peters Melba Moore Raymond St. Jacques Paula Kelly |
Cinematography | Robert B. Hauser |
Edited by | Walter Hannemann |
Music by | Kurt Weill |
Distributed by | American Film Theatre |
Release date |
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Running time | 107 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Lost in the Stars is the 1974 film version of the Kurt Weill-Maxwell Anderson musical adaptation of the Alan Paton novel Cry, the Beloved Country . The film was produced and released as part of the American Film Theatre, which adapted theatrical works for a subscription-driven cinema series.
Directed by Daniel Mann, the film follows a Zulu preacher, Reverend Stephen Kumalo (Brock Peters), in his journey to Johannesburg to search for his long-missing son, Absalom (Clifton Davis). He discovers his son is a paroled felon living in a shantytown with his pregnant girlfriend (Melba Moore). Absolom becomes involved in a robbery plan that results in the death of a white anti-apartheid advocate. Absolom is jailed, tried and sentenced to death, leaving his father unable to continue his ministerial work. [1]
Due to the film's criticism of the apartheid system, it could not be shot on location in South Africa, requiring exterior footage to be shot in Cottage Grove, Oregon. [2]
Lost in the Stars has been poorly received by critics. At the time of its release, Vincent Canby of The New York Times called it "a very bad movie" and questioned why the film version dropped the reconciliation between Reverend Kumalo and the murdered man's father, which was integral to the Paton novel and the original stage version. [3]
When the film was released on DVD in 2003, its received more unfavorable reviews. Time Out New York called it "a series of well-intentioned clichés" [4] while Film Threat stated it was "not the missing classic that one hopes it could be." [5]
Absalom was an Israelite prince. Born to David and Maacah, who was from Geshur, he was the only full sibling of Tamar. He is described in the Hebrew Bible as being exceptionally beautiful, as is his sister. In the narrative of 2 Samuel 13, his sister Tamar takes refuge at his house after she is raped by their paternal half-brother Amnon ; David is angered by the incident, but does nothing, as Amnon is his heir apparent. Infuriated by the rape and David's inaction, Absalom assassinates Amnon and subsequently flees to Geshur, which is ruled by his and Tamar's maternal grandfather Talmai.
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Missing is a 1982 American biographical thriller drama film directed by Costa-Gavras from a screenplay written by Gavras and Donald E. Stewart, adapted from the book The Execution of Charles Horman: An American Sacrifice (1978) by Thomas Hauser, based on the disappearance of American journalist Charles Horman, in the aftermath of the United States-backed Chilean coup of 1973, which deposed the democratically elected socialist President Salvador Allende.
Brock Peters was an American actor and singer, best known for playing the villainous "Crown" in the 1959 film version of Porgy and Bess, and Tom Robinson in the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird. He made his Broadway debut in the 1965 Norman Rosten play Mister Johnson. He was nominated for a Tony Award and won a Drama Desk Award and an Outer Critics Circle Award for his lead role as Rev. Stephen Kumalo in the 1972 Broadway revival of the musical Lost in the Stars. He received the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 1991 and a star on Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1992.
Lost in the Stars is a musical with book and lyrics by Maxwell Anderson and music by Kurt Weill, based on the novel Cry, the Beloved Country (1948) by Alan Paton. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1949; it was the composer's last work for the stage before he died the following year.
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Clifton Duncan Davis is an American actor, singer, songwriter, minister, and author.
Cry, the Beloved Country is a 1948 novel by South African writer Alan Paton. Set in the prelude to apartheid in South Africa, it follows a black village priest and a white farmer who must deal with news of a murder.
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Beatrice Melba Smith known by her stage name Melba Moore, is an American singer and actress.
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Cotton Comes to Harlem is a 1970 American neo-noir action comedy film co-written and directed by Ossie Davis and starring Godfrey Cambridge, Raymond St. Jacques, and Redd Foxx. The film, later cited as an early example of the blaxploitation genre, is based on Chester Himes' novel of the same name. The opening theme, "Ain't Now But It's Gonna Be", was written by Ossie Davis and performed by Melba Moore. The film was one of the many black films that appeared in the 1970s and became overnight hits. It was followed two years later by the sequel Come Back, Charleston Blue (1972).
Cry, the Beloved Country is a 1995 South African-American drama film directed by Darrell Roodt, based on the novel Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton. It stars James Earl Jones and Richard Harris.
Cry, the Beloved Country is a 1951 British drama film directed by Zoltán Korda and starring Sidney Poitier, Charles Carson and Canada Lee, in his last film role. The film is based on the novel of the same name written by Alan Paton.
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