Eve's Bayou (1997)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Kasi Lemmons

Writer (WGA):

Kasi Lemmons (written by)

Release Date:

7 November 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

The secrets that hold us together can also tear us apart.

Plot:

The story is set in 1962 Louisiana. The big Batiste family is headed by charming doctor Louis. Though he is married to beautiful Roz...

Plot Keywords:

Louisiana | Voodoo Priestess | Dysfunctional Family | Period Piece | Memory

Awards:

8 wins & 14 nominations

Cast

Jurnee Smollett	...	Eve Batiste
Meagan Good	...	Cisely Batiste
Samuel L. Jackson	...	Louis Batiste
Lynn Whitfield	...	Roz Batiste
Debbi Morgan	...	Mozelle Batiste Delacroix
Jake Smollett	...	Poe Batiste
Ethel Ayler	...	Gran Mere
Diahann Carroll	...	Elzora
Vondie Curtis-Hall	...	Julian Grayraven
Roger Guenveur Smith	...	Lenny Mereaux
Lisa Nicole Carson	...	Matty Mereaux
Branford Marsalis	...	Harry
Afonda Colbert	...	Henrietta
Lola Dalferes	...	Lynette
Marcus Lyle Brown	...	Hosea

MPAA:

Rated R for sexuality and language.

Runtime:

109 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #35338) | Iceland:12 (video rating) | Iceland:L (original rating) | Australia:M | South Korea:15 | Netherlands:12 | UK:15 | Canada:14A | France:U | USA:R | Spain:13

Filming Locations:

Covington, Louisiana, USA

Company:

Trimark Pictures

Trivia:

In the film Mozelle had previously had three husbands and was about to marry a new one. In real life Morgan has also had four husbands.

Goofs:

Continuity: Julian Grayraven walks out of a heavy rain storm onto Mozelle's porch. As Grayraven removes his hat when Mozelle opens the door, we see a tiny drop of rain fall from the hat. When we next see the hat, it's dripping rain profusely from a hatrack.

Quotes:

Eve: How do you kill someone with voodoo?
Mozelle Batiste Delacroix: Hmm, I almost forgot you was there. Stick some pins in a doll, perhaps. I really don't know. What made you ask that?
Eve: Nothing.
Mozelle Batiste Delacroix: Well, you must have been thinking something before you said it. What led you to that particular thought?
[Glances at Eve]
Eve: I don't know...
Mozelle Batiste Delacroix: [Expression becomes serious] Is there some you're angry with? Someone you want dead?
Eve: [pauses] I'm going inside.
[Turns to leave]
Mozelle Batiste Delacroix: [Stops Eve] No, I think you better tell me what's on your mind!

Movie Connections:

Spin off Dr. Hugo (1998)

Really, really good

I had never heard of this film when my wife ordered it from NetFlix, and I keep wondering why. This is a terrific flick. Jurnee Smollett as Eve is truly excellent, and not just "good for a kid," or "good but annoyingly precocious," she is just plain good. The story is wonderful, and I love the fact that the race of the characters is hardly mentioned. It's a story about people, and it doesn't matter on what continent their ancestors originated. The cast is uniformly excellent, especially Samuel Jackson (one of the film industry's most versatile actors), and Debbi Morgan. Small parts portrayed by Branford Marsalis and Vondie Curtis Hall are very nicely done, and add color to the background of friends and relatives of the Batiste family. I enjoy the way the film shows us the world of psychic perception and Voodoo, and the degree to which belief in them can affect behavior. The location filming is wonderfully evocative of the steaming south, and the direction spot-on. I recommend this film.