Doc Thomas (Will Geer) recounts the story of John Kane to his District Attorney son Lloyd who is more concerned about unions coming to their small Alabama town. John (Sidney Poitier) had left town as a teen and never maintains any contact but he seems to know to come back home whenever a family member is about to die. His sister is dying and he has returned. The local police suspects that he's labor agitator but Doc suspects different.
This needs to be Poitier's movie. It can't spend that much time from the other points of view. By halfway, I started rooting for Poitier to do something interesting. It doesn't help that he seems to be a very passive character and the other half of the movie is about white people being confused about him. Poitier does get into a fight. It's the not best fight choreography but it does lead to a haunting exchange with Louisa MacGill. Her desperation is devastating. It's really the only great scene in the film. There is good potential for a Twilight Zone episode but the movie devolves into a waiting game. The audience is simply waiting for John's nature to be revealed so that they can go home.
This needs to be Poitier's movie. It can't spend that much time from the other points of view. By halfway, I started rooting for Poitier to do something interesting. It doesn't help that he seems to be a very passive character and the other half of the movie is about white people being confused about him. Poitier does get into a fight. It's the not best fight choreography but it does lead to a haunting exchange with Louisa MacGill. Her desperation is devastating. It's really the only great scene in the film. There is good potential for a Twilight Zone episode but the movie devolves into a waiting game. The audience is simply waiting for John's nature to be revealed so that they can go home.