Due to coursework and Christmas I ain't gonna be on here too much for a while
Due to coursework and Christmas I ain't gonna be on here too much for a while
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Made back in 1939 in a racially segregated United States The Devil's Daughter was an all-black film, made by African-Americans primarily for African Americans. It was directed by Arthur Leonard.
The film is set in Jamaica and starts with lots of calypso music and a large group of people all dancing. This was a nice enough opening but it went on an on, it actually lasted a full five minutes. Five minutes of watching people dance for no real reason. It had no actual part in the story at all.
Then we move on to a cock fight and I wonder if this was an actual cock fight. Maybe there weren't the same restrictions in the 30s. Anyway Percy Jackson a servant of the new owner of the plantation - Sylvia. He intrudes on the cock fight and tries to swindle the cock owners out of his fowl via a dice game. The owner catches on what's going on and chases him away. He is later found by Elvira who rides about on a donkey. He tells her he is being chased about by dead people and she says
she knows someone who can help so she takes him to Isabel, who puts his soul into a pig to keep it safe.
Isabel is the half sister of Sylvia and has been running the plantation whilst Sylvia lived in Harlem. She is jealous of Sylvia for inheriting the plantation and jealous because the man she loves loves Sylvia. So she plots against her and that is pretty much the story.
The story of this film wasn't great, written by a guy call Terwilliger (That's Sideshow Bob's surname I think) he seems to have written a hell of a lot of films and maybe should have focused a little more on quality. It all starts off rather cheery, Elvira and Percy have their little story about finding and looking after a pig. Then the whole Sylvia aspect was meant to be a bit more darker but didn't really pull it off and it just wasn't a well written film. The ending especially was such an anti-climax, you're just left thinking "That was it, all this for that".
As far as directing goes it wasn't terribly directed but they did put it together rather badly. Isabel would be talking to her sister at a table and then when the camera focused on Sylvia we would see a completely different background behind her to what should be behind her from the wider shot. There was also a rather badly put together fight scene with unrealistic and badly synchronised punch noises.
All the scenery looked very nice and realistic but then again the picture quality was so bad a painted background wouldn't have had a chance to look bad.
For 1939 the acting wasn't terrible but it wasn't great. Isabel was played by Nina Mae McKinney who is famous for being one of the first African-America film stars. I didn't like the acting at all really except for the little Elvira and Percy storyline I thought this story was just sort of nice and although the acting wasn't realistic they were these nice almost cartoony characters.
The music is the star of this film, loads of calypso music and dancing about and I really liked it. It was sort of added to the detriment of the story but seeing as the story was crap it didn't really matter.
I wouldn't recommend getting this film. It only lasts 52 minutes, my copy did come with another film on the disc which I haven't watched yet but I would recommend most people to avoid it. It was an enjoyable watch for me sort of. I mean the cock fight and the music and the comic pig story made it worth my while really. I watched half of it and went and done something else and then came back to it. So I give it two stars due to the entertainment I wrung out of it. I wish Ciao had 10 star ratings some times.
The quality of the picture and sound of this DVD aren't great. The picture especially is rather dull and blurry at times. It is black and white obviously. I imagine you'd be hard pressed to find a copy of this with special features.
I have no idea why this is called The Devil's Daughter. It has elements of voodoo in it but the heroine and the villain have the same father so it's a ridiculous title. In the USA it is called Daughter of the Isle of Jamaica a title that has a lot more relevance to the actual film.
Certification
I'm saying U. I can't find a proper certification. My DVD case doesn't have one. IMBd says USA: Approved whatever that means. But definitely a U. Come on it's the 1939 the world was still being portrayed as an overly nice place. The overly mild and happy ending says it all.
Pictures of The Devil's Daughter
Nina Mae McKinney
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 1980 - Horror - Director: Stanley Kubrick - Original Language: English - Classification: 18 years and over - Starring: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd
You had me at 'puts his soul ino a pig to keep it safe'. xx
greenierexyboy 23.08.2008 10:16
You do realise that's liable to go on the box if it's ever re-released, don't you? 'This film had some really worthwhile cock fighting in it - Phelim'.
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