Body and Soul (1925)

Director:

Oscar Micheaux

Writers:

Oscar Micheaux (novel)
Oscar Micheaux (screenplay)

Release Date:

9 November 1925 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A minister is malevolent and sinister behind his righteous facade. He consorts with, and later extorts from...

Plot Keywords:

Gambling | Convict | Church | Theft | Extortion

Cast

Paul Robeson	...	Reverend Isaiah T. Jenkins / His brother Sylvester
Mercedes Gilbert	...	Isabelle - the Girl
Julia Theresa Russell	...	Martha Jane - Her Mother
Lawrence Chenault	...	Yello-Curley' Hinds - the Phony Reverends Former Jailmate
Marshall Rogers	...	Speakeasy proprietor (as Marshall Rodgers)
Lillian Johnson	...	Sis' Caline, a Pious Lady
Madame Robinson	...	'Sis' Lucy, a Pious Lady
Chester A. Alexander	...	Deacon Simpkins, a Church Elder
Walter Cornick	...	Brother Amos, a Church Elder
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tom Fletcher	...	(uncredited)

Directed by
Oscar Micheaux

Writing credits
Oscar Micheaux		(novel "Body and Soul")
Oscar Micheaux		(screenplay)

Produced by
Oscar Micheaux	....	producer

Production Companies

• Micheaux Film

Distributors

• Micheaux Film (1925) (USA) (theatrical)
• Criterion Collection, The (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Facets Multimedia Distribution (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Hollywood's Attic (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Kino Video (????) (USA) (VHS)

Runtime:

102 min (TCM print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Filming Locations:

Bronx, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Micheaux Film

Trivia:

The board censors initially had strong objections to the dark and sinister portrayal of a man of the cloth. But with no money left for reshoots, producer Oscar Micheaux shot a quick ending which makes most of the film's action a dream of the heroine's.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "The American Experience: Midnight Ramble (#7.4)" (1994)

Wishing for a director's cut

Of course, we will never have a chance to see a director's cut of Body and Soul. Were that possible, then we would certainly see a completely different movie.

Many of the obvious flaws in the film were due to Oscar Micheaux's difficulties in getting the production past the censors. Despite the fact that the convict is acting as a minister, the act of showing one in a minister's robes drinking was too much for the time.

Today it would be a matter of getting several million dollars from the studio and re-shooting sections of the movie. Oscar Micheaux did not have this luxury. This meant that he had to use the little money available to him to change a completely unacceptable movie into one that would help pay the bills.

The only way to do this was to add an ending that corrected everything, and cut the sections of drinking, which happened to be crucial to the story. This resulted not only in a lack of explanation for the story and very clumsy movements from one scene to the next.

The drinking scenes have been replaced, which lengthens the film to eight of its original nine reels. This certainly helps, but the alternative ending remains. I am thinking that the director's cut would not have included this and Oscar Micheaux would have a much better movie.

Of course, Paul Robeson drives this movie (his only silent appearance), and moviegoers now know of his brilliant voice. Sans this, his penetrating eyes showed the emotion that must have matched his stage performances, which makes this a movie that can be recommended.