Posted on Dec 25, 2023
Why ‘The Color Purple’ has been a source of Black healing — and controversy
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“The Color Purple” is not a remake, producer Scott Sanders insists.
It’s a fresh reimagining of Alice Walker’s novel and the celebrated 1985 film — and the star-studded cast wants the new movie, now a musical, to heal audiences as much as it healed them in the process of making it.
Fantasia Barrino, who stars as the adult Celie, revealed earlier this month that she decided to pause the trauma-related therapy she was undergoing so she could give all of herself to the film’s complex main character.
“I have to give young Fantasia to Celie this go-round,” Barrino said, recalling a conversation with her therapist. Barrino has played Celie on stage numerous times, including on Broadway from 2007 to 2008, but this portrayal, she said, is different. “This time around, playing her and living with her … she was my life coach,” Barrino said of Celie. “She was my therapist and I was allowed to heal.”
It’s a fresh reimagining of Alice Walker’s novel and the celebrated 1985 film — and the star-studded cast wants the new movie, now a musical, to heal audiences as much as it healed them in the process of making it.
Fantasia Barrino, who stars as the adult Celie, revealed earlier this month that she decided to pause the trauma-related therapy she was undergoing so she could give all of herself to the film’s complex main character.
“I have to give young Fantasia to Celie this go-round,” Barrino said, recalling a conversation with her therapist. Barrino has played Celie on stage numerous times, including on Broadway from 2007 to 2008, but this portrayal, she said, is different. “This time around, playing her and living with her … she was my life coach,” Barrino said of Celie. “She was my therapist and I was allowed to heal.”
Why ‘The Color Purple’ has been a source of Black healing — and controversy
Posted from nbcnews.com
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Posted 5 mo ago
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."Oprah Winfrey, who played Sofia in the first film, defended the movie against its critics then. ‘’This movie is not trying to represent the history of Black people in this country any more than ‘The Godfather’ was trying to represent the history of Italian Americans. In this case, it’s one woman’s story,” she told The New York Times.
Winfrey and Spielberg are both producers of the new iteration of the film, set to debut on Christmas Day.
When Spielberg’s movie came around nearly four decades ago, some men also defended the movie, including Julian Norris, a Black Chicago Tribune writer who called it “one of the most beautiful and tender movies” he had ever seen. He added, “being a Black man, I was not upset at the depiction of Black men. I realized that the men who were portrayed in the movie did not represent all Black men.”
Now, some of the actors in Bazawule’s film say they view it as more of a healing opportunity than a vehicle to stoke gender divides. Hawkins, who plays Harpo, spoke through tears earlier this month as he recalled having his father attend the film’s Los Angeles premiere. “Our love language has evolved over the years. But to sit with him and watch him process and feel was special for me as a man, as a Black man,” he said. “I was watching him be healed by this story.”
Playwright Marsha Norman adapted “The Color Purple” into a musical for the stage in 2005, a production that received 11 Tony nominations. Its 2015 revival earned two Tony wins, one for Cynthia Erivo’s portrayal of Celie and another for best musical revival. Danielle Brooks also earned a Tony nomination for her role as Sofia in the revival.
“The Color Purple” is slated to premiere in North America on Dec. 25 and internationally beginning Jan. 18, 2024."
..."Oprah Winfrey, who played Sofia in the first film, defended the movie against its critics then. ‘’This movie is not trying to represent the history of Black people in this country any more than ‘The Godfather’ was trying to represent the history of Italian Americans. In this case, it’s one woman’s story,” she told The New York Times.
Winfrey and Spielberg are both producers of the new iteration of the film, set to debut on Christmas Day.
When Spielberg’s movie came around nearly four decades ago, some men also defended the movie, including Julian Norris, a Black Chicago Tribune writer who called it “one of the most beautiful and tender movies” he had ever seen. He added, “being a Black man, I was not upset at the depiction of Black men. I realized that the men who were portrayed in the movie did not represent all Black men.”
Now, some of the actors in Bazawule’s film say they view it as more of a healing opportunity than a vehicle to stoke gender divides. Hawkins, who plays Harpo, spoke through tears earlier this month as he recalled having his father attend the film’s Los Angeles premiere. “Our love language has evolved over the years. But to sit with him and watch him process and feel was special for me as a man, as a Black man,” he said. “I was watching him be healed by this story.”
Playwright Marsha Norman adapted “The Color Purple” into a musical for the stage in 2005, a production that received 11 Tony nominations. Its 2015 revival earned two Tony wins, one for Cynthia Erivo’s portrayal of Celie and another for best musical revival. Danielle Brooks also earned a Tony nomination for her role as Sofia in the revival.
“The Color Purple” is slated to premiere in North America on Dec. 25 and internationally beginning Jan. 18, 2024."
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To me, the original was such a powerful moving movie I do not think it could be improved on.
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