Cry, the Beloved Country (1951)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Zoltan Korda

Writers (WGA):

Alan Paton (novel)
Alan Paton (screenplay)

Release Date:

15 August 1952 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Filmed in Africa...Where It Was Lived!

Plot:

In the back country of South Africa, black minister Stephen Kumalo (Canada Lee) journeys to the city to search for his missing son...

Plot Keywords:

Based On Novel

Awards:

Nominated for 2 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Canada Lee	...	Stephen Kumalo
Charles Carson	...	James Jarvis
Sidney Poitier	...	Reverend Msimangu
Joyce Carey	...	Margaret Jarvis
Geoffrey Keen	...	Father Vincent
Michael Goodliffe	...	Martens, Probation Official at Reformatory
Edric Connor	...	John Kumalo, Brother of Stephen
Charles McRae	...	Church Friend of Stephen
Lionel Ngakane	...	Absolom Kumalo, Son of Stephen
Vivien Clinton	...	Mary (Wedded to Absolom)
Albertina Temba	...	Mrs. Kumalo, Wife of Stephen
Bruce Anderson	...	Frank Smith, Farmer and Friend of James Jarvis
Bruce Meredith Smith	...	Captain Jaarsveldt, Policeman Bearing News of Murder
Berdine Grunewald	...	Mary Jarvis, Wife of Arthur
Cecil Cartwright	...	Harrison, Father of Mary Jarvis

Also Known As:

African Fury

Runtime:

103 min | Canada:96 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:S | Sweden:15 | Canada:PG

Filming Locations:

Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Company:

London Film Productions

Trivia:

The film was shot in South Africa. Since the country was ruled by strict apartheid (enforced racial separation) laws, stars Sidney Poitier and Canada Lee and producer/director Zoltan Korda cooked up a scheme where they told the South African immigration authorities that Poitier and Lee were not actors but were Korda's indentured servants; otherwise, the two black actors and the white director would not have been allowed to associate with each other while they were in the country.

Movie Connections:

Version of Lost in the Stars (1974)

Sidney Poitier and Canada Lee

After acting in Alfred Hitchcock's 'Lifeboat' with Tallulah Bankhead, Canada Lee went on to act with Sidney Poitier in his last film, 'Cry, the Beloved Country'. The film has Lee as an aging priest, whereas Poitier plays the endearing and impressive south African clergyman.