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Amblin Entertainment
Warner Bros. Pictures
Not part of a collection.
It's about life. It's about love. It's about us.
An epic tale spanning forty years in the life of Celie, an African-American woman living in the South who survives incredible abuse and bigotry. After Celie's abusive father marries her off to the equally debasing 'Mister' Albert Johnson, things go from bad to worse, leaving Celie to find companionship anywhere she can. She perseveres, holding on to her dream of one day being reunited with her sister in Africa.
CinemaSerf
Jul 2, 2026 · via TMDB
I think that rarely can a better cast have been assembled to tell a story than here. Telling the often quite harrowing lifestory of "Celie" (Whoopi Goldberg), we take a poignant look at a life in the American south where racism certainly prevailed, but where the African-American community saw it's own women frequently brutalised by their own menfolk. She frequently finds herself on the wrong end of the wrath of her husband "Albert" (Danny Glover) but her options aren't just limited, they're pretty much non-existant. Sadly, this relationship wasn't her first with a man who treated her with contempt - at fourteen she was delivered of a baby conceived with a father whose response was something along the lines of "your mama can't do this for me no more". She does have one ray of light in her life, though, and that's her sister "Nettie" - but when she falls foul of her husband she is banished from their home and, we assume, returns to Africa. The story of "Celie" provides a conduit for other character studies here, too, and of those the most significant is probably that of the no-nonsense "Sofia" (Oprah Winfrey) whose own altercation with an unforgiving white woman sees her savagely beaten, imprisoned and only released after years in a cell that have robbed her of not just her dignity, but of her vitality as well. Set across a period of three decades or more, though, you always feel that there is a sembance of hope and as time creeps on and "Celie" sees other black women achieve greater freedom, even wealth and success, it is surely only a matter of time before she can shake off the shackles of her loveless marriage. It's also worth mentioning Danny Glover and Willard Pugh here, too. The former her husband but perhaps the more toxic being the latter - "Harpo". Here is an old man whose views on women had hardly evolved from the dark ages and who has intentionally passed those onto his malleable son whom Glover convincingly portrays in a more complicated and dare I say even vulnerable fashion as the story unfolds. Certainly, it's a powerful critique on the ghastliness of segregated politics and supremacies - but it's isn't so much a portrayal of black versus white, more one of black versus black - man against woman, and Goldberg shines throughout with a poignant, exposed and thoroughly engaging performance. Add a score from Quincy Jones and some production design from heaven and you have a characterful piece of cinema that gets more watchable as it gets older.
GenerationofSwine
Jan 12, 2023 · via TMDB
Well, this is one of those movies that hinges on a singular performance. In this case it's Danny Glover who is absolutely amazing in his role, probably the best performance of his career, and one of the best that came out of the 80s. But Goldberg and Oprah really stink. I don't know what was going on there but they were all over the place. However, despite them, Glover does carry the role, and Spielberg realized that this was a film adapted from a play. He kind of took that and ran with it, so the performances (minus two notable ones) were as earnest as you would get in live theater, the set designs, the camera movements, it all felt less like a movie and a lot more like, well, like you were seeing it live on Broadway. And, honestly, I think that worked. It was a unique approach and it made it wonderful to watch.
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
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Spectrum On Demand
Danny Glover
Albert
Whoopi Goldberg
Celie
Margaret Avery
Shug Avery
Oprah Winfrey
Sofia
Willard E. Pugh
Harpo
Akosua Busia
Nettie
Desreta Jackson
Young Celie
Adolph Caesar
Old Mr.
Rae Dawn Chong
Squeak
Dana Ivey
Miss Millie
Leonard Jackson
Pa
Bennet Guillory
Grady
Carl Anderson
Reverend Samuel
Susan Beaubian
Corrine
Laurence Fishburne
Swain
Leon Rippy
Store Clerk
Drew Bundini Brown
Jook Joint Patron
Arnold F. Turner
Jook Joint Patron
Jeris Poindexter
Jook Joint Patron
Hawthorne James
Jook Joint Patron
Sonny Terry
Jook Joint Musician
Greg Phillinganes
Jook Joint Musician
Paulinho da Costa
African Musician
Clarence Avant
African Musician
Maria Howell
Church Choir Soloist (uncredited)
Gayle King
Church-goer (uncredited)
Bo Welch
Art Direction
Allen Daviau
Director of Photography
Aggie Guerard Rodgers
Costume Design
Dana Dru Evenson
Stunt Double
Tony Brubaker
Stunts
Steven Spielberg
Director
Michael Kahn
Editor
Jon Peters
Executive Producer
Peter Guber
Executive Producer
Frank Marshall
Producer
Kathleen Kennedy
Producer
Quincy Jones
Producer
Steven Spielberg
Producer
Fred Steiner
Orchestrator
Randy Kerber
Orchestrator
Quincy Jones
Original Music Composer
Quincy Jones
Songs
Rod Temperton
Songs
Lionel Richie
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Quincy Jones
Lyricist
Rod Temperton
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Alice Walker
Novel
Menno Meyjes
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Black Sweat
Sem Legendas
szum
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Hellion
Grandview, U.S.A.
Back Roads
Dec 16, 1985
New York City, New York
Dec 18, 1985
Feb 7, 1986
Jan 16, 1987
Re-release
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Waterhole #3
1967
Tourist-A
Sign in to vote
Battle your watched movies head-to-head
Community Top Movies
Evil Dead II
1987 · 14 wins
The Dark Knight
2008 · 14 wins
Halloween
1978 · 13 wins
Final Destination
2000 · 12 wins
Halloween II
1981 · 11 wins
Trivia
Leaderboard →Playing as a guest — sign in to save your score and rank on the leaderboard.
Movie Trivia
Guess the movie from a clue — tagline, plot, cast and more. Pick from four posters.
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