Paul Robeson - Here I Stand
by St. Claire Bourne
(Click here)
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
DVD Cover Information
Actor: Ossie Davis, Paul Robeson, Stephen Bourne, Uta HagenDirector: St. Claire Bourne
Editor: Will Lashley
Producer: Chiz Schultz
Producer: David Menair
Producer: Susan Lacy
DVD: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Black & White, Color, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: Academy Ratio, 1.33:1
Running Time: 117 minutes
DVD Release Date: 1999-08-24
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Winstar
Movie Reviews of Paul Robeson - Here I Stand
Movie Review: An amazing life
Summary: 5 Stars
This is an incredible documentary about the life and career of the legendary Paul Robeson, and covers the good along with the bad. Less than positive aspects of his life, such as how he cheated on his wife, are dealt with openly and honestly instead of being excused or glossed over. His life really typified all that is both good and bad about America. He was a poor African-American boy whose father urged him to make a better life for himself, and he became an all-star football player at college and did exceptionally well in school. He could have gone on to be a very successful lawyer after graduation, but was forced to find another occupation because of the institutionalised racism of the time, even up in the North. Robeson found success in everything he did after this stinging rejection, whether he were singing, acting onstage, acting onscreen, fundraising, or giving public speeches. He truly went from strength to strength, and because he was so devoted and committed to standing by his beliefs and principles, his career was temporarily halted and his reputation (in America at least) tarnished during the McCarthyist witch hunts of the late Forties and most of the Fifties. People who had not long ago been huge fans and supporters of his suddenly turned on him because of his Leftist beliefs and how he refused to back down from what he stood for. However, not everyone let the terrifying political climate of the time deter them from continuing to support him and attend his concerts and lectures, and he was able to find great continued success in Europe. And even while he was being persecuted in his country, he made it clear that he did not intend to permanently settle in Europe, because he'd been born in America and was committed to working to reform and change it. After the climate of fear and persecution lifted, he was able to continue his career as a singer and speaker in America.
Watching this documentary really made Robeson one of my new heroes. Not only was he a great actor and a fantastic singer, he was also a tireless champion of civil rights and civil liberties, an activist against the Vietnam War, all other wars, and the bomb, a proponent of peace, and a great believer that we are all one, that people of all races and nationalities are brothers and sisters. When many others were scared into hiding their Leftist beliefs, Robeson stayed strong and spoke out against the gross violations of civil liberties and the First Amendment during the McCarthyist witch hunts, stating loud and clear that it was against the law to persecute people for belonging to a certain political party and for trying to deny them their freedom of association and expression. Scarily enough, we're heading back towards that same climate today. He really practised what he preached, and wasn't afraid to speak out politically even when he was in the Soviet Union during the last years of Stalin's reign. At a concert he gave, he said he had recently spoken with a man who was supposed to have officially disappeared (and who soon was killed, one of the victims of the so-called "Doctors' Plot"), and to express his solidarity with the Jewish community, he sang "Zog Nit Keyn Mol," the song sung by the ghetto fighters and partisans during the Shoah. He really went above and beyond the call of duty in reaching out to all groups of oppressed people and feeling that regardless of differing races, religions, and nationalities, all oppressed peoples' struggles for freedom, equality, and civil rights were one and the same and that all people, whomever they might be, were indeed one big family. Anyone can do the easy thing, but it takes a person of morals, character, and conviction to do the right thing, even though it might be the harder thing to do and one might be persecuted on account of it. Staying true to himself meant more to him than denying his beliefs for the sake of an easier life.
Summary of Paul Robeson - Here I Stand
If Paul Robeson (1898-1976) is remembered at all these days, it's most likely as the booming baritone on the definitive version of "Ol' Man River." But Robeson, as this serious, nearly two-hour 1999 documentary makes plain, was a great deal more than that. A world-renowned singer and actor, athlete, orator, activist, socialist, and patriot, he was most likely the most famous black man in the world in the mid-20th century. Robeson's conscience was indefatigable; he wasn't always right, but he never backed down from his enemies, principally imperialism and "conservative capitalism." He paid a heavy price, from ostracism to outright persecution, for maintaining his principles. Here I Stand details all of it, with the usual interviews and film clips highlighted by a great deal of footage (performances, interviews, speeches) of Robeson himself. This fascinating story of a great man's life and work also includes a discography, filmography, and complete chronology. --Sam GrahamArt House & International DVD Video
DVD Video
- Action & Adventure
- African American Cinema
- Animation
- Anime & Manga
- Art House & International
- Classics
- Comedy
- Cult Movies
- Documentary
- Drama
- Educational
- Fitness & Yoga
- Gay & Lesbian
- Horror
- Kids & Family
- Military & War
- Music Video & Concerts
- Musicals & Performing Arts
- Mystery & Suspense
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Special Interests
- Sports
- Television
- Westerns
Movies most talked about in Explore the best in indie, documentary and international film
TampopoRelease date: 2005-05-22; DVD
Best price: $15.99
Price in other shops:
Mostly MarthaGEDECK,MARTINA; Release date: 2003-02-18; DVD
Best price: $13.79
Price in other shops:
Fast Food Fast WomenRelease date: 2002-11-19; DVD
Best price: $24.99
McLibelCINEMA LIBRE DISTRIBUTION; Release date: 2005-08-30; DVD
Best price: $4.04
Price in other shops:
Fed Up! Genetic Engineering, Industrial Agriculture and Sustainable AlternativesRelease date: 2006-01-01; DVD
Best price: $8.77
Price in other shops:
Rodrigo D: No FutureRelease date: 2004-08-17; DVD
Best price: $26.99
Price in other shops:
Our Lady of the AssassinsRelease date: 2002-03-26; DVD
Best price: $16.94
Price in other shops:
Maria Full of GraceHBO HOME VIDEO; Release date: 2004-12-07; DVD
Best price: $3.25
Price in other shops:
YesterdayHBO HOME VIDEO; Release date: 2006-01-10; DVD
Best price: $4.17
Price in other shops:
Longtime CompanionDAVISON,BRUCE; Release date: 2001-01-23; DVD
Best price: $7.64
Price in other shops:
Similar DVD Movies
How to Eat Your Watermelon in White Company (And Enjoy It)IMAGE ENT.; Release date: 2007-06-05; DVD
Best price: $13.34
Price in other shops:
Paul Robeson Live at Carnegie HallRelease date: 1990-05-24; Music CD
Best price: $13.80
Price in other shops:
Paul Robeson: Portraits of the Artist (The Emperor Jones / Body and Soul / Borderline / Sanders of the River / Jericho / The Proud Valley / Native Land / Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist) - Criterion CollectionIMAGE ENT.; Release date: 2007-02-13; DVD
Best price: $49.98
Price in other shops:
The Undiscovered Paul Robeson , An Artist's Journey, 1898-1939by Paul Jr. Robeson
Wiley; Published: 2001-03-02; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.74
Price in other shops:
Here I Standby Paul Robeson
Beacon Press; Published: 1998-01-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.15
Price in other shops:
Songs of Free Men/ A Paul Robeson RecitalSony; Release date: 1997-12-09; Music CD
Best price: $4.98
Price in other shops:
Paul Robeson - James Earl Jones One Man ShowRelease date: 2005-01-25; DVD
Best price: $10.56
Price in other shops:
The American Experience - Marcus Garvey: Look for Me in the WhirlwindPBS; Release date: 2002-02-05; DVD
Best price: $12.23
Price in other shops:
Scandalize My Name: Stories From the BlacklistRelease date: 2004-01-13; DVD
Best price: $2.44
Price in other shops:
Paul Robeson - Speak of Me As I AmRelease date: 2007-02-27; DVD
Best price: $10.39
Price in other shops: