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Movies / On DVD / Sounder
Sounder

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Sounder (1972)

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Reviews Counted:16

Fresh:14

Rotten:2

Average Rating:7.7/10

Runtime: 1 hr 45 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: An extremely powerful and uplifting story about a family of black sharecroppers, the Morgans, set in rural Louisiana during the early 1930s, Martin Ritt's SOUNDER is so simple and effective that it... An extremely powerful and uplifting story about a family of black sharecroppers, the Morgans, set in rural Louisiana during the early 1930s, Martin Ritt's SOUNDER is so simple and effective that it evokes an emotional response from viewers of all ages. Even so, SOUNDER is not a children's film by any means; it treats serious, adult issues, and features some of the most deeply felt performances and mature relationships ever captured on film. SOUNDER's title comes from the name of the Morgan family dog that young David Lee Morgan takes with him while hunting with his father, Nathan. Unfortunately, times are so hard for the Morgans that when Nathan tries to steal a ham for his family, he is caught and sent to a labor camp. David, now the man of the house, sets out on a journey to find the camp where his father was sent. On his way, he comes across an all-black school where he enrolls, learning empowering lessons about black achievement in America. Based on the Newberry Award winning novel by William H. Armstrong, SOUNDER not only improves on its source material, but it is also one of the rare films about the black experience that moves people of all races. [More]

Starring: Cicely Tyson, Paul Winfield, Carmen Mathews, Kevin Hooks

Starring: Cicely Tyson, Paul Winfield, Carmen Mathews, Kevin Hooks, Taj Mahal, Janet MacLachlan, James Best, Yvonne Jarrell

Director: Martin Ritt

Director: Martin Ritt
Screenwriter: Lonne Elder, III
Producer: Robert B. Radnitz
Composer: Taj Mahal

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Sounder

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1 - 17 (sorted by rotten rating; UK critics are listed first)
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Ritt's film must respond to the needs of an entertainment industry, and in its desire to be uplifting, leaves its characters one-dimensional without ensuring that the one dimension is heroic.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Derek Adams
Derek Adams
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
03/26/09
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

If Sounder, an inteligent enough movie, avoids all the major pitfalls of its type, it also lacks the excitement that may have come from plumbing greater depths and discovering a few tougher, less accessible insights.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
05/09/05
Roger Greenspun
Roger Greenspun
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Heartbreaking and intelligent.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
04/03/07
TV Guide's Movie Guide
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
11/23/04
Andy Klein
Andy Klein
Los Angeles CityBeat

A masterwork from director Martin Ritt. Movies are rarely this empathetic.

comment Comment
07/27/02
Chuck Rudolph
Chuck Rudolph
Matinee Magazine

No review available.

comment Comment
10/17/07
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

Another fine example of Martin Ritt's earthy southern dramas

Full Review Source: All Movie Guide | comment Comment
06/19/02
Dan Jardine
Dan Jardine
All Movie Guide

Painfully honest, unpretentious, and blessedly simple.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dave Kehr
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader

A very fine unpretentious, heartwarming and uplifting family drama about a Deep South black sharecropper family trying to survive during the Depression.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
05/30/06
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Honest and touching, Martin Ritt's Oscar-nominated Sounder, a Depression-era saga, does proud the American family and the American family movie genre.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
03/05/09
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

comment Comment
06/15/05
Lori Hoffman
Lori Hoffman
Atlantic City Weekly

Director Martin Ritt soaks us in the heat, the beauty, the racism and the buzzing cicadas of Louisiana.

Full Review Source: Denver Post | comment Comment
04/03/07
Michael Booth
Michael Booth
Denver Post

Affecting update of the coming-of-age classic.

Full Review Source: Common Sense Media | comment Comment
12/01/09
Nancy Davis Kho
Nancy Davis Kho
Common Sense Media

No review available.

comment Comment
12/05/02
Nell Minow
Nell Minow
Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies

No review available.

comment Comment
07/29/02
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

It is one of the most compassionate and truthful of movies, and there's not a level where it doesn't succeed completely.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
10/23/04
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
1 - 17 (sorted by rotten rating; UK critics are listed first)
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