A Raisin in the Sun (the title comes from a simile in a poem about dreams deferred by Langston Hughes, which is quoted at the beginning of this version) charts the course of the Younger family, headed by matriarch Lena (Rashad), Lena's son Walter, Jr. (Combs), and Walter's wife, Ruth (McDonald). The nuclear family also includes Walter's sister Beneatha (Sanaa Lathan) and Walter and Ruth's young son, Travis (Justin Martin). Having been stuck their whole lives in a dingy south Chicago tenement, they see their fortunes changing, albeit under less than ideal circumstances, when Walter, Sr.'s death leaves them with an insurance windfall. Lena decides it's time to move into a home of their own, something Ruth agrees would be best for Travis, but Walter, Jr. has dreams of his own, investing in a liquor store. When Lena moves ahead with her plan, Walter, Jr. finds himself the victim of a scam, and then the family's problems are exacerbated by the reaction of the all-white neighborhood where they want to move.

The play and many resultant adaptations have all benefited not only from the heartfelt plot (actually personally experienced by the Hansberrys, resulting in a famous court case), but especially by Lorraine Hansberry's eloquent dialogue, which flows from each character like living poetry. When Lena talks about taking the true measure of a man, or, in another use of the same word, Walter spits out his disdain for "The Man", they reveal their characters, and their inherent dignity, through virtually every line. The play is also notable (and prescient) for its Afrocentric elements, as sister Beneatha becomes enticed by a back to Africa movement that is a major subplot.

The pluses of this particular production are the beautifully detailed performances of Rashad and McDonald. Portraying two women of substance from different generations, they positively bristle with pride while simultaneously exuding quiet suffering (not so quiet at times in McDonald's feisty Ruth). Though this particular adaptation is occasionally heavy handed in its depiction of various bigoted behaviors the Youngers suffer (watch the reaction of the grocer to Lena asking for apples versus his quick response to the white woman who does the same thing a moment later), there's no escaping the powerful presence these two women exude throughout the television movie.

Somewhat less successful is Combs, who nonetheless deserves some props for getting this thing filmed, acting as its Executive Producer. Unfortunately, though he's at least passable most of the time, Combs simply doesn't have the emotional depth to capture the conflicted nuances of Hansberry's expertly crafted character. Walter is a mass of contradictions--angry, hopeful, proud, discouraged. Combs seems capable of barely one emotion at a time, and sometimes not even that. He does best in the sequences where Walter, Jr. is plotting his "big deal," perhaps because that comes closest to Combs' own personal experience. And though it's perhaps a patently unfair comparison, one need only to watch a few moments of Poitier's performance in the same role to see what it can be when enacted by someone of the necessary emotional depth.

Director Kenny Leon wisely opens up the original play's apartment-bound setting, but the fact is this is obviously a filmed stage play, and I personally don't think that's much of a detriment considering the source material. What bothered me more about Leon's directorial choices was the jiggly handheld camerawork, once again going for a cinema verite style that so many young directors seem to want to aim for, when it's not dictated by the material and actually distracts from the goings-on more often than not.

All of these qualms fall by the wayside however under the magic spell of Hansberry's beautiful dialogue and wonderfully drawn characters (Hansberry tragically died from cancer in 1965 when she was only 34). Though purists will probably want to stick with original 1961 film version, younger audiences perhaps drawn to this particular cast will receive a valuable history lesson clad in some of the most eloquent dialogue imaginable.

The DVD

Video:
Raisin in the Sun sports a nice enhanced 1.78:1 transfer that helps raise the material from your basic "movie of the week" look. Colors and saturation are strong, though contrast leaves a little to be desired, especially in the early morning and dusk/nighttime scenes.

Sound:
The 5.1 soundtrack is surprisingly excellent, with really nicely detailed separation and good fidelity throughout. Mervyn Warren's score, though occasionally cloying, adds some emotional heft. English and French subtitles are also available.

Extras:
Though there's the expected director's commentary, the best extra on this DVD is a superb 23 minute featurette detailing the history of A Raisin in the Sun, giving some great insight into the Hansberry family history (including interviews with Lorraine's sister), as well as the original Broadway and film adaptations.

Final Thoughts:
A Raisin in the Sun stands alone as one of the most distinctive modern American plays, aside from its historic status as having been written by an African American woman. Though the film adaptation still remains the best widely available version out there, Rashad and McDonald's performances make this Raisin extremely worthwhile. Recommended.

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"G-d made stars galore" & "Hey, what kind of a crappy fortune is this?" ZMK, modern prophet