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Steven Spielberg, proving he’s one of the few modern filmmakers who has the visual fluncy to be capable of making a great silent film, took a melodramatic, D.W. Griffith-inspired approach to filming Alice Walker’s novel. His tactics made the film controversial, but also a popular hit. You can argu with the appropriateness of Spielberg’s decision, but his astonishing facility with images is undeniable–from the exhilarating and eye-popping opening shots of children playing in paradisiacal purple fields to the way he conveys the brutality of a rape by showing hanging leather belts banging against the head of the shaking bed. In a way it’s a shame that Whoopi Goldberg, a stage monologist who made her screen debut in this movie, went on to become so famous, because it was, in part, her unfamiliarity that made her understated performance as Celie so effective. (This may be the first and last time that the adjective understated can be applied to Goldberg.) Nominated for 11 Academy Awards, including best picture and actress (supporting players Oprah Winfrey and Margaret Avery were also nominated), it was quite a scandal–and a crushing blow to Spielberg–when it won none. The digital video disc requires flipping to play the whole movie. –Jim Emerson
Watch The Color Purple Online Right Now!
The Color Purple was mellifluous! You have to tend this movie! A ineffable performance by Danny Glover & Whoopi Goldberg make The Color Purple a “have to study” movie!
The eye-opening cast includes Danny Glover, Whoopi Goldberg, Margaret Avery, Oprah Winfrey, Willard E. Pugh. This cast just make The Color Purple the more amazing!
