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Hallelujah! (1929) More at IMDbPro »

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24 comments in total

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13 out of 14 people found the following comment useful :-
Jagged, but a jem through and through, 21 July 2004
Author: Kieran Kenney from California

I probably don't need to go into the historical facts about this movie or the plot, as this had probably been expunded in numerous other comments. Personally I think that Hallelujah is a beautiful and powerful film, sympathetic to African Americans, and I think it's remarkable that it was produced at all.

Hallelujah is a huge production, with hundreds of extras. The cast was made up of mostly unknowns. Cast members like Fally Belle McKnight and Victoria Spivey apparently never made any other films, and leads Daniel L. Haynes and Nina Mae McKinney were obviously getting started. The cast is very good, I thought, especially Spivey (a veteran of the stage) as Rose. Haynes is okay in the beginning, seeming a little uneven in his role as well-meaning rogue Zeke, but the final scenes allow him to prove the commanding presence he could muster as an screen presence. Nina Mae McKinney is a power-house. A short, curvy beauty with an interesting voice, she has something of a young Myrna Loy. In fact, I just recently saw a still from a Loy film called The Squall where Loy looks an awful lot like McKinney.

Movies like Hallelujah are an acquired taste. When I first saw it, I was distracted by the crudeness of the sound, the jagged editing and the overall unevenness of the movie. Sure, two or three years later, Hollywood was turning out glossy productions like Red Dust and Blond Venus, with highly polished editing, clear sound and more mobile camera-work, but this is 1929. Sound film-making techniques had yet to be smoothed out. The crinkles of a young process actually add charm to this film, if you know to expect them.

I'll admit as well that, when I first saw Hallelujah, I was irritated by the voices. There's a lot of screeching from the women, and a great deal of mumbling as well. A second viewing, though, allows one to see past these "irritating" aspects and appreciate the voices for what they are. This way, Fanny Belle McKnight's agonized cries of sorrow and her singing the children to sleep is more touching than it is grating.

It's hard to know what else to say about the film. For all it's shortcomings, it's a touching film, lyrical even. I think it's a wonderful production, and I doubt it would not have been made much differently by a black director. Plus, one must agree, King Vidor was a far better craftsman than Oscar Micheaux. 9/10

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8 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
Way ahead of it's time. A work of genius., 10 February 2003

Author: grasshopper54 from Cromwell, CT

In 1929, MGM began the process of converting to sound. They were almost the "latecomers" of sound conversion compared to their competitors over at the Warners lot; Warners' Vitaphone was pretty much in full swing by 1929 after having experimented with orchestral sound on film in 1926 in "The Better 'Ole" and "Don Juan" and then with actual voice embedment on film in "The Jazz Singer" the following year.

Even for such a major film studio like MGM, the cost was almost prohibitive, so Louis B. Mayer was skeptical about financing a major film epic featuring an all black cast. In the first half of the 20th Century, the major film studios catered mostly to white audiences, so a project of this nature was almost unheard of. Director, King Vidor was personally convinced that this film would be a success at the box office that he offered to match MGM dollar for dollar in producing this film. That said, the executives at MGM agreed, reluctantly, to take on this project.

I was totally surprised by the candidness of the material. From the way the major studios depicted black people as individuals of little or no importance, usually portraying them in a very negative way, I was at first skeptical. I expected more singing, dancing and stereotyping. Little did I know what a surprise I was in for! MGM could not have done a better job at portraying individuals with such humanistic qualities. As with most backdrops featuring blacks, it takes place in the cotton fields of the South; the motion picture industry failed miserably to depict black urban or middle class life until decades later.

Amazingly, most, if not all, of these actors were untested individuals on the screen or stage. Vidor's direction, along with these actors' willingness to succeed on the screen, created a work of art for the cinema. A huge box office success, "Hallelujah" was an oasis in an otherwise all-white world of big business cinema. It is a shame that the movie moguls at the time did not take further advantage of the acting talents of minorities.

Leonard Maltin could not have put it more succinctly when he said about Hallelujah: "King Vidor's early talkie triumph, a stylized view of black life focusing on a Southern cotton-picker who becomes a preacher but retains all-too-human weaknesses." Definitely a home run! A must see!

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9 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :-
Nina Mae McKinney- The First Black Movie Star, 23 April 2003

Author: msladysoul (msladysoul@aol.com) from Michigan

Nina Mae McKinney portrayed Chick in this movie. The untrained, natural singing, dancing, acting talent stole everyone's heart who saw this movie, even till this day she's still winning hearts. A great actress, after this movie people named her "The Black Garbo" and "The Dark Clara Bow". Being the first black actress, she had to represent her race well, and show that Blacks could act, and show Hollywood that Blacks could hold their own on the silver screen. Norma Shearer, John Gilbert, Irving Thalberg, and King Vidor was breath-taken by her acting, and after her you saw many white actresses copying her style, the hands on the hips and facial expressions. This movie isn't stereotypical at all, its about Black Life in the South, the music and styles of the time. Nina Mae was promised many more movies, but never did anything else, but singing apperances, shorts, and maid apperances. But she did get to show her acting in the independent black movies. If you ever get to see them, you won't be sorry. People say this movie was ahead of its time, maybe so, But Nina was lucky she got to show all her talents, singing, dancing, comedy, and acting. Even Blacks don't get to show all of that today. People say that Lena Horne opened the doors, thats false, Nina Mae McKinney did, representing the Black race well, and showing that we could act, open the doors for Blacks in the future in Hollywood.

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5 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
A son is killed due to the senseless stupidity of another son. He is forgiven and goes on to become a revered preacher who ends up sinning yet again., 4 February 2005

Author: Chemi Che-Mponda (chemiche3@yahoo.com) from Cambridge, MA

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Hallelujah, may be an old black and white film from 1929, but I found it incredibly moving. First, I had no idea that Hollywood made an all black film in 1929, just out of the Silent film era. So, what a treat it was to see 'Hallelujah'.

This story is about a poor close knit religious family somewhere down South. There's a saying that , "Religion is the Opium of the People". This film shows that there is some truth to that as faith seems to drown out grief.

When the film opens we see the entire family working together to harvest their cotton crop. This is the only source of income for the family for the entire year. Later the family celebrates their harvest when they are interrupted by their neighbors Adam and Eve and their eleven kids. They want to do the right thing and get married, after years of living together and having eleven kids. While Pappy 'Parson' Johnson (Harry Gray) marries his guests, the oldest son, Zeke (Daniel L. Haynes) goes inside and lusts after Missy Rose (Victoria Spivey). She's a beautiful young woman adopted into the family. She is afraid of his advances, but they end up in a passionate kiss.

In the morning the crop is loaded onto a wagon and the two older boys, Zeke and Spunk (Everett McGarrity) head off to the cotton gin, where its nicely processed into a bale and sold. The income from their crop is $100. Of this money Zeke is supposed to buy things for his family, clothes, shoes, food stuffs. Instead Zeke abandons his loving brother and runs off to the pier. There he sees a beautiful mulatto woman, Chick (Nina Mae McKinney) dancing. Zeke is mesmerized. Chick hurls insults at Zeke, but after Zeke pulls out his family's earnings she Chick walks away with him. They end up in a juke joint where Zeke is conned out of all the money by Chick and her partner Hot Shot (William Fountaine). When Zeke realizes he's been had he fights for the money. Hot Shot pulls out a gun shooting indiscriminately, Zeke grabs it and shoots as well. Spunk who was searching for his brother and just found him at the bar is fatally wounded. We don't know who fired the shot that killed him.

Mammy (Fanny Belle deKnight) senses something is terribly wrong when she sees her older sons bed empty. She started wailing and the family prays for the boys. The next morning Zeke returns home with his brother's body instead of the goodies or money that the family was waiting for. A wake is held and Zeke repents his sins and becomes a preacher. Zeke's style: he becomes the conductor on a train headed for heaven, complete with stops. When Zeke says this is the last stop all the sinners in the crowd flock to the train on the track to Salvation,.

Zeke's preaching leads to prosperity for his family. They travel by their own train to Revivals. In an unnamed town Zeke meets Chick and Hot Shot again. They taunt him terribly. Chick ends up at a Revival and is saved. She returns to be baptized to the dislike of the family. Viewers can feel the sexual tension and lust Zeke feels for Chick. After the baptism, Zeke carries Chick to a tent as if possessed, and is about to make love to her when Mammy intervenes. That night Zeke seems to be soul searching and asks Missy Rose to marry him.

The next day there's a spiritually charged sermon followed by a Holy dance. Chick bites Zeke on the hand like a viper, breaking his resistance, the next thing he is running out the Church into the darkness with her in his arms. Missy Rose goes running after them into the dark begging for Zeke's return.. Realizing that she's lost Zeke she cries in such a mournful way viewers can feel her pain.

Next Zeke goes to work in a factory to support Chick, but its obviously tiring hard work for him. Hot Shot finds Chick and meets her at their home while Zeke is away at work. One night Hot Shot returns for Chick. Zeke is tired and sleeping at the table when a stone thrown by Hot Shot at the window wakes him. Zeke gets his shotgun and shoots at the fleeing couple. He runs after them. He incredibly fast catching up with the wagon. The wagon get stuck in the mud overturning, and throwing Chick in the mud. She's mortally wounded.

While Chick is dying she pleads for Zeke to take her out of the mud. She speaking like she can't see him, she says the Devil is coming for her. Zeke doesn't realize Chick is dying and she dies in his arms. Hot Shot returns to check if Chick is okay. Realizing that Chick is dead, Zeke chases Hot Shot down in the swamp and kills him.

Zeke lands in Prison on a Chain Gang but is later paroled. He returns to his family who are happy to see him and we're lead to believe that he ends up marrying Missy Rose.

At times this film feels like a play, and one might get annoyed by the stereotypes. The photography is that of the time, right out of the Silent film Era. Even with its technical flaws, this is a powerful film whose message is valid today.

They say that King Vidor used his own funds to make this film and it was originally meant to be a silent film. Considering that there weren't many Black films made in the early 20th century, King Vidor needs to be commended otherwise we wouldn't be talking of Hallelujah now.

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5 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
I really enjoy this film., 5 September 2001

Author: jimkis-3 from Indiana

This film, despite its early talkie crudities, is one of the best religious dramas ever filmed in my opinion. It gets better with each viewing, as you discover more and more nuances in the script and the filmmaking as well. The performances of the leads are stellar -- especially Daniel J. Haynes in the lead. And Nina Mae McKinney is fabulous as "Chick" -- a seductress who tempts Haynes on so many different levels -- subverting and perverting his religious fervor to mold to her pure carnal lust. The spirituals are stirring; the story, though somewhat maudlin, is compelling and quite plausible. The revival scenes are both uplifting and moving. Forget that it was the first "all-black" musical or drama or whatever...it holds it place as a fine film...and doesn't need to be pigeonholed as a historical or "race" period piece. Bold, brave...and ultimately reverent...this is a true film classic.

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5 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
Deeply moving, 6 February 2003

Author: zetes from Saint Paul, MN

A gorgeous, all-black masterpiece. King Vidor directs a group of (mostly) non-actors to depict a picture of black life in the South. Daniel L. Haynes stars as Zeke, a none-too-smart cotton farmer who is tricked into wasting half a year's pay on gambling by a sexy little hoochie (Nina Mae McKinney). When Zeke gets in a fight with the man who cheated to win his money, tragedy strikes. In a fit of grief, he begins to belt out a gospel song and the people around him think he should become a priest. Not only is this a great gospel musical, it's a great religious drama, one where the emotions of faith seem deeply felt and real. Vidor's direction is as good as it ever was. When a lot of the films of 1929 were clunky and static, this one has a beautiful visual and aural flow with only a couple of small stumbles along the way.

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7 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
Historical Masterpiece!, 16 February 2001

Author: Shazzar from Long Beach, CA

I saw "Hallelujah" on cable television one night, and I had to buy the video because it really touched me. I learned that it was the first all-black sound movie, and I must say it was a classic. This was such an achievement for 1929, and I must say I immediately became a fan of the beautiful Nina Mae McKinney who played the young temptress Chick in the movie. This movie was enlightening because the characters, action and everything that took place reminded me so much of today's time, especially the character Chick as a temptress, the African-American church with its unique praise and the importance of dance and song. I loved the moral of the story, it was one of redemption and forgiveness. This is a powerful film and it will always remain a historical classic. "Hallelujah" gave the young Nina Mae McKinney her start, and she later inspired other African-American beauties like Dorothy Dandridge and Lena Horn to let their stars shines. Truly she was before her time, but she helped blaze the trail for others to follow, and gave so much light from her star in this film. This movie is unforgettable and truly a classic!

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4 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
Highly entertaining,thank you TCM, 6 October 2004
Author: mojo2004 from United States

I want to thank TCM for showing this movie and all others that wouldn't see the light of day. Yes this movie is crude in all phases of a movie coming together today. Since it took place in 1928 it's wonderful. My mother grew up down south in N.C. so yes a lot of Blacks were poor,picking cotton,living in shacks and finding release in either the church and or what was called the "devil's business" ,vice. The first time I saw this movie I wanted to cry, everything was so sad,and ugly but it held my interest. I hated how Zeke abandoned his family and I wanted them to hate him too.The "hootchie mama" Chick was very pretty and had a natural performing talent. I felt sorry for her when she died since she only wanted to be free. Funny thing about the movie is all over the U.S. the same story about Church,Sin, the Man of God, and the Heathen Woman is still going on.I love old movies with shaky film,missing dialouge,unskilled actors and all. It's a walking, talking bit of history unfolding before your eyes. I think as I watch the movie, did any of the actors make something of themselves? was anyone shunned for even doing this? did any church come out for the movie since I know many churches probably were against it. I saw the remark about it being racist and I disagree. It's a fact that Blacks sang as a release from the real world and all the misery that awaited them day after day. What would have been racist is if the actors had been White but in blackface. TCM showed this yesterday 10/5/04 and it's the 4th time I've seen it.I rate this 8/10.

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4 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
This movie is NOT racist!!!, 5 October 2004
Author: IdleFingers (phloppie7@hotmail.com) from Arkansas

How can someone call this racist? This is a beautiful movie told with an all black cast... obviously unheard of in 1929. But let me get this straight... this movie is racist because the black family in the movie is happy??? This is a family who are doing well for the time. They have good crops of cotton, the family is healthy and they are all spiritually inclined. Is it a written rule for a black family to be depressed and miserable because they're cotton pickers and they're black in the early 1900s? And what's wrong with singing spiritual songs in the field? These are people working out in a blazing hot sun with no radio trying to pass the time away while picking cotton. And being a <gasp!> HAPPY religious family of course they are going to be singing songs about their spirituality.

Albeit this movie is not perfect... but to call it racist is so off base... and to say it's exploitive is just as bad.

This is a gem of a movie. well told, well acted, well directed and beautifully presented. King Vidor was thoughtful in his directing, showing a beautiful side to a culture that the audience of it's time was not familiar with.

A must see for all classic movie fans.

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4 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
A great movie from a great director., 7 June 2000
Author: Gene Bivins (gayspiritwarrior) from Los Angeles, California

It's important to realize this was only the first year of sound pictures. Seen in that light, HALLELUJAH! has a remarkable fluidity, and a freedom from the tyranny of the sound camera that is little short of astonishing. (See "Singin' in the Rain" for a realistic depiction of this problem.) The acting is on a high level, if somewhat dated. King Vidor did an admirable job in depicting his characters' life condition, and was deservedly nominated as Best Director of 1929/30.

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