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Separate But Equal
Artisan // Unrated // May 20, 2003
List Price: $14.98 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
THE MOVIE
Separate But Equal stars Sidney Poitier in one of his best, and perhaps least recognized roles – least recognized because this was a made-for-television film rather than a theatrical release. Poitier takes on the role of Thurgood Marshall, and examines his role in one of the greatest court cases of all time, the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision in which the Supreme Court declared segregation illegal in public schools.
The movie was shown in two parts on TV, and maintains its two-part division on this DVD. Part one focuses on the early court battles in South Carolina, where the principal of an all-black school (Ed Hall) is upset that his children can't have access to a school bus, which is forcing some of his children to walk up to five miles to school each day. When his request is denied, he lodges a protest that the school district isn't following the state's "separate but equal" law, which requires that all schools must provide students with equal facilities.
Seeking help from the NAACP, Marshall arrives to take on the case in a South Carolina court. But when he argues in court that segregation cannot lead to equality, he loses his case because his statements go up against years of South Carolinian law. By the end of the first act, Marshall has decided to take his fight to the highest court in the land and, as Poitier so eloquently states at the end of the first part, "Let the Supreme Court decide!"
Part Two of Separate But Equal details the Supreme Court battle and introduces us to two interesting characters. One is defense attorney John W. Davis (Burt Lancaster) who may just believe that Marshall is doing what is right for the country, but feels a need to defend South Carolina since he believes that the law should be based on precedence and that the courts should not be in the business of creating new law.
Davis' argument is also the feeling of many of the members of the Supreme Court. But a turning point occurs when the Chief Justice dies and is replaced by Earl Warren (Richard Kiley), who was governor of California and in office when thousands of Japanese were placed in internment camps during World War II. But surprisingly, Warren takes the side of Marshall, and the second half of Part Two goes to great lengths to show how Chief Justice Warren was as much of a hero as Marshall was in getting the segregation laws overturned.
Separate But Equal is a highly entertaining piece of drama, containing great performances from Poitier, Kiley and Lancaster (in a smaller role than the other two). If it has a flaw, it's that we don't get to see much of the personal lives of these men or find out much about their private lives, although the film does spend a bit of time chronicling the relationship between Marshall and his wife, who is dying of cancer. But where the movie does excel is in the courtroom drama, giving a great depiction of how the Supreme Court works and how each side researched and presented their arguments.
THE DVD
Video:
The video on the DVD is a little below average, even for a made-for-TV movie, and noticeable "dirt" is visible on the transfer from time to time. It's presented in the full-frame format, and although this is far from the best of transfers, it's about what one would expect from a DVD transfer of a television film that is over ten years old (the movie aired in 1991).
Audio:
Presented in 2.0 Dolby, the audio is serviceable but far from noteworthy. Since this is a courtroom drama, a good portion of the movie is given to debate and dialogue, so the lack of a better audio transfer really doesn't hurt the movie.
Extras:
This is where the DVD really suffers and loses some points. There are no extras whatsoever on this DVD, sure to be a disappointment to viewers – and somewhat insulting considering the historical importance of the film's topic. It would have been nice to get a documentary piece on the real Thurgood Marshall, or at the very least some text biographies about these men. The text of the actual Supreme Court decision would have also been a welcome and educational addition. The only "extra" on this disc (if you even would count it as such) is a chapter selection.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Because of the lack of bonus material and the less than stellar transfer, I can only recommend Separate But Equal for rental, rather than purchase. That is, by no means, a comment against the quality of the actual movie, which is one of the better courtroom dramas you'll see, made-for-television or otherwise. It's just hard to justify a purchase given the lack of material on this disc. However, if you're a big fan of Sidney Poitier, or have a larger-than-average interest in the law and the court system, you might want to add this one to your collection, although you'd probably wouldn't lose much picking up a cheap VHS version if you can find one.
Apparently, while our segregation troubles seem to be behind us, it seems that all DVDs are not created "equal"! So while this reviewer wholeheartedly endorses the movie, I cannot endorse the DVD release of this otherwise entertaining movie.
Separate But Equal stars Sidney Poitier in one of his best, and perhaps least recognized roles – least recognized because this was a made-for-television film rather than a theatrical release. Poitier takes on the role of Thurgood Marshall, and examines his role in one of the greatest court cases of all time, the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision in which the Supreme Court declared segregation illegal in public schools.
The movie was shown in two parts on TV, and maintains its two-part division on this DVD. Part one focuses on the early court battles in South Carolina, where the principal of an all-black school (Ed Hall) is upset that his children can't have access to a school bus, which is forcing some of his children to walk up to five miles to school each day. When his request is denied, he lodges a protest that the school district isn't following the state's "separate but equal" law, which requires that all schools must provide students with equal facilities.
Seeking help from the NAACP, Marshall arrives to take on the case in a South Carolina court. But when he argues in court that segregation cannot lead to equality, he loses his case because his statements go up against years of South Carolinian law. By the end of the first act, Marshall has decided to take his fight to the highest court in the land and, as Poitier so eloquently states at the end of the first part, "Let the Supreme Court decide!"
Part Two of Separate But Equal details the Supreme Court battle and introduces us to two interesting characters. One is defense attorney John W. Davis (Burt Lancaster) who may just believe that Marshall is doing what is right for the country, but feels a need to defend South Carolina since he believes that the law should be based on precedence and that the courts should not be in the business of creating new law.
Davis' argument is also the feeling of many of the members of the Supreme Court. But a turning point occurs when the Chief Justice dies and is replaced by Earl Warren (Richard Kiley), who was governor of California and in office when thousands of Japanese were placed in internment camps during World War II. But surprisingly, Warren takes the side of Marshall, and the second half of Part Two goes to great lengths to show how Chief Justice Warren was as much of a hero as Marshall was in getting the segregation laws overturned.
Separate But Equal is a highly entertaining piece of drama, containing great performances from Poitier, Kiley and Lancaster (in a smaller role than the other two). If it has a flaw, it's that we don't get to see much of the personal lives of these men or find out much about their private lives, although the film does spend a bit of time chronicling the relationship between Marshall and his wife, who is dying of cancer. But where the movie does excel is in the courtroom drama, giving a great depiction of how the Supreme Court works and how each side researched and presented their arguments.
THE DVD
Video:
The video on the DVD is a little below average, even for a made-for-TV movie, and noticeable "dirt" is visible on the transfer from time to time. It's presented in the full-frame format, and although this is far from the best of transfers, it's about what one would expect from a DVD transfer of a television film that is over ten years old (the movie aired in 1991).
Audio:
Presented in 2.0 Dolby, the audio is serviceable but far from noteworthy. Since this is a courtroom drama, a good portion of the movie is given to debate and dialogue, so the lack of a better audio transfer really doesn't hurt the movie.
Extras:
This is where the DVD really suffers and loses some points. There are no extras whatsoever on this DVD, sure to be a disappointment to viewers – and somewhat insulting considering the historical importance of the film's topic. It would have been nice to get a documentary piece on the real Thurgood Marshall, or at the very least some text biographies about these men. The text of the actual Supreme Court decision would have also been a welcome and educational addition. The only "extra" on this disc (if you even would count it as such) is a chapter selection.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Because of the lack of bonus material and the less than stellar transfer, I can only recommend Separate But Equal for rental, rather than purchase. That is, by no means, a comment against the quality of the actual movie, which is one of the better courtroom dramas you'll see, made-for-television or otherwise. It's just hard to justify a purchase given the lack of material on this disc. However, if you're a big fan of Sidney Poitier, or have a larger-than-average interest in the law and the court system, you might want to add this one to your collection, although you'd probably wouldn't lose much picking up a cheap VHS version if you can find one.
Apparently, while our segregation troubles seem to be behind us, it seems that all DVDs are not created "equal"! So while this reviewer wholeheartedly endorses the movie, I cannot endorse the DVD release of this otherwise entertaining movie.
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