Rosewood (1997)

Pretty Good

Fantastic!

Beautiful, moving film.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

I won't say much, but I'm just a bit disappointed that No One has a website on what ever happened to the children and grandchildren of the descendants of Rosewood. I know they lived to see retribution, but it seems it is a well kept secret. This DVD was the first DVD I ever purchased and that was years ago. At the time, which was about 1999, the movie sold new for $5 at Walmart. When I purchased it, I had no idea this was a true story. Why? Because I don't usually read info contained on the back of the movie. I like surprises, but was not prepared emotionally for this movie. It was a lot like so many true stories regarding this country and Black Americans. I used to watch westerns as a child, but because of the false hood regarding the Indians as the bad guys, I simply can't enjoy them anymore. However as A comment to this movie, it was Excellent to the point I was crying and was very emotional about it, where I waited till now to watch it again. It is still heartbreaking, and I cried again. This country has not changed much, since the JENNA 6 is new news, and this kind of things is still going on. Crosses are still being burned and someone has the audacity to ask, Does Race Matter. Until we can stop asking that question, it will always matter. As a writer, I must admit, this movie was true to life, not omitting the hard truth of what happened. I'm sure it had to be downplayed a lot, but I got the message, loud and clear. It was an event that happened in the early twenties, and we now live in the year 2008. Today, a Black Man is running for Office as the First Black President of the United States. If it happens, it will be a sign of change, but until this country stops looking at the color of a person's skin and everyone is treated as equals, then not much has changed. Let it just be that a man from Illinois is running for president, not a Black 'MAN' or 'WOMAN'.

There are some movies I would had never heard of, if they weren't composed by a well know composers. Soundtracks are often a reason for me wanting to watch a movie. It's a lovely little soundtrack from maestro John Williams. It really helps to tell the story and enhances things.The movie is a dramatic laden one that is powerful in parts but also filled with some big sappy sentiments. Such as the way the black-community gets portrayed. It's made to look like one big happy, perfect, peaceful, innocent community. It feels a bit too sappy and cheap and on top of that this introduction lasts a tad too long. does tend to make the movie melodramatic but luckily the movie doesn't ever really cross this line. Luckily the movie does get better as things start to go from bad till worse in the story. It becomes a more of an emotional engaging and powerful movie that provides the movie with a couple of effective moments, though the movie at the end also makes the mistake by becoming more of an action-movie. The actual ending itself also goes on for too long, which also causes it to be overly sappy.It's a well directed movie that shows that John Singleton obviously has talent. Once thing gets started things flow very well and the movie becomes an effective one. It's of course an all the more shocking movie since its based on true events. But nevertheless the movie, because of its sentiments, feels more like a based on a true story made for TV movie, than a shocking, moving Hollywood-hit, worthy of Oscar-nominations. The movie also doesn't feel like its trying to send out a message or tell an important story.The movie is also good looking with some nice cinematography and also the sets and costumes help to create the right atmosphere for the time period the movie is set in.The movie has an impressive cast but not everybody seems happily cast. Such as Ving Rhames. He just isn't good enough for this serious and more carrying sort of roles. His character also feels totally unrealistic. No wonder, since his, unlike the other characters in the movie, are fictionalized ones. I don't know why but Don Cheadle and Jon Voight also feel quite out of place. I guess it's because their characters aren't really ever deepened out good and interestingly enough in the movie. But Don Cheadle is of course also always better in smaller supporting roles. This movie could had been a real good and powerful movie if it relied on its characters and became a real character movie but the movie its storytelling, that is more focused on the sensational and racial aspects of the movie, doesn't allow this. Michael Rooker does play a good role and so does Bruce McGill, who is about one of the most underrated actors in the business. Robert Patrick is also in the movie but his role is unfortunately far too small, though not insignificant.A good, though certainly not perfect dramatic telling of some horrible true events.7/10http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

Part of what makes "Rosewood" so hard to watch - but I recommend it very much - is not only that it really happened, but also the thought that the events portrayed may have partly been the root of what happened in Florida in 2000. With this vicious racism so deeply ingrained in our society, it's no surprise that Florida's government deprived a number of African-Americans of their right to vote. For more information about these sorts of things, read James Loewen's book "Lies Across America: What Our Historic Sites Get Wrong".But anyway, this is a great (and I would say under-appreciated) movie. Jon Voight, Ving Rhames, Don Cheadle, Michael Rooker and Muse Watson all do a great job in their roles. Definitely one of John Singleton's really good ones.

I am white and grew up in the county where this really happened. I remember as a child driving by the place where this community was. There was a small sign that was put up by the Florida DOT that said "Rosewood" but there was nothing there. I asked my mother why and she was unsure what to tell me. Then when this movie came out I realized what had happened. I began asking the elderly people I knew, but they did not want to talk about this except for my ex-husband's step dad. He remembered being a boy and the mob trying to get his father to join them. He refused to participate and was threatened for the future of his family. I am also ashamed to say that race relations have still not gotten a lot better here. In 1969 when I was in kindergarten, I remember being sent home due to race riots in the high school. I now live in California, and I know some people found the movie distressing. Unfortunately the south has a subculture of violence even to this day. The actors did an excellent job on this film. I am so glad that the filmmakers had the courage to take this story on. People tend to think of Florida as an integrated state because of Miami and Orlando, but central and northern Florida is still very racist. For example the African-Americans still call the whites by names such as "Mr. John" or "Miss Ellen". Then little town I grew up in ,Williston, still has the African-Americans living on one side of the railroad tracks and the whites on the other "better" side. There are some whites that are very decent people and some blacks that are of very poor character. I keep waiting and praying for the day when a person will "be judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character" in the words of the great Martin Luther King JR. PLEASE SEE THIS MOVIE!! If Americas can take the violence that is in video games and stupid horror movies they should be able to take the true portrayal of man's inhumanity to man in this most wonderful film!!