Rosewood (film)
 |
| Rosewood | |
|---|---|
 Rosewood theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | John Singleton |
| Written by | Gregory Poirier |
| Produced by | Joel Silver |
| Starring | Jon Voight Ving Rhames Don Cheadle Bruce McGill Loren Dean Esther Rolle Elise Neal with Robert Patrick and Michael Rooker |
| Music by | John Williams |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
Release dates | February 21, 1997 |
Running time | 140 mins. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $31,000,000 |
Rosewood is a 1997 film, starring Ving Rhames as a fictional character who travels to the town of Rosewood, Florida, United States, and becomes a witness to the 1923 Rosewood massacre. Also starring was Don Cheadle as Sylvester, a non-fictional character who also became witness to the atrocities, and Jon Voight, as a white store owner who inhabits a village near Rosewood. The three characters become entangled in a desperate attempt to save whomever they can from the rage of the racist whites of Rosewood. The director was John Singleton.
Due to gore, violence, a sexual episode, and a profusive usage of racial slurs and curses, the film was given an MPAA rating of R. The film did better with critics [1] than any John Singleton film since Boyz N the Hood. Despite that, the film was not a commercial success and was unable to earn the $30 million budget back.
The difficult subject matter (a white-led massacre of blacks) made it hard for the film to immediately gain widespread appeal.
There was, and remains, considerable debate as to how closely the film follows the actual historical account of the destruction of Rosewood and surrounding events, which is not surprising given the debates surrounding the details of the actual massacre[citation needed]. In one scene, Ving Rhames fights off a white mob with pistols — this never happened. The siege of the Carrier house did happen. Esther Rolle plays a murder victim of a white mob. This was her third to her last acting role before she died.
Cast
- Jon Voight as John Wright
- Ving Rhames as Mann
- Don Cheadle as Sylvester Carrier
- Bruce McGill as Duke Purdy
- Loren Dean as James Taylor
- Esther Rolle as Aunt Sarah
- Elise Neal as Beulah (Scrappie)
- Robert Patrick as Fanny's lover
- Michael Rooker as Sheriff Walker
- Catherine Kellner as Fanny Taylor
- Akosua Busia as Jewel
- Paul Benjamin as James Carrier
- Kevin Jackson as Sam Carter
- Mark Boone Junior as Poly
- Muse Watson as Henry Andrews
- Badja Djola as John Bradley
- Kathryn Meisle as Mary Wright
- Jaimz Woolvett as Deputy Earl
See also
External links
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