Deacons for Defense (2003) (TV)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Bill Duke

Writers (WGA):

Michael D'Antonio (story)
Richard Wesley (teleplay) ...

Release Date:

31 March 2006 (Hungary)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

The words "Black Power" bring back memories of names like Stokely Carmichael, H. Rap Brown, and Eldridge Cleaver...

Plot Keywords:

Ku Klux Klan | Docudrama | Vigilante | Civil Rights Movement

Awards:

4 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Forest Whitaker	...	Marcus Clay
Jonathan Silverman	...	Michael Deane
Ossie Davis	...	Rev. Gregory
Gene Mack	...	T.J.
Tyrone Benskin	...	Archie
Paul Benjamin	...	Otis
Mpho Koaho	...	Baily
Melanie Nicholls-King	...	Rose Clay
Serena Lee	...	Lucille Clay
Khafre Armatrading	...	Brooks Clay
Adam Weiner	...	Charles Hillibrand
Christopher Britton	...	William Chase (as Chris Britton)
Beau Starr	...	Neely
Paulino Nunes	...	Lawson
Aaron Walpole	...	Jimmy

MPAA:

Rated R for some violent images and language.

Runtime:

Brazil:78 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Netherlands:12 | Australia:M | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Quotes:

[leading KKK rally]
William Chase: Now we have a white company like Patterson Paper telling us how to run our lives. Taking our jobs. Spreading communism and niggerism to our community. They are taking our way of life. Tonight, I ask you to stand tall... stand proud... exalt in your whiteness... in your intelligence... in your superiority. It's our turn now. White Power, rain down on this great country of ours.
[shouts]
William Chase: White power.
All: [shouting] White power.
William Chase: [shouts] White power.
All: [shouting] White power.
William Chase: [shouts] White power.
All: [shouting] White power.
William Chase: [shouts] White power.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in 10th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (2004) (TV)

Before the Panthers, there were the Deacons.

This excellent made-for-cable movies tells the story of a group of blacks in a small mill town who form a defense group to protect themselves from the brutality of the Klan during the dawn of The 1964 Civil Rights Act. The fact-based story centers around the main character played by Forest Whitaker (who gives his best performance in years) who was arrested and beaten by racist cop for protecting his daughter from being beat during a peace demonstration that turned ugly. After that you see his character transform from a "good nigger" who thought he knew his place to a man who realized that his dignity and family were more important than "yes sah-in'" and "no sah-in'" to the racist white townfolks. There's also good turns from Ossie Davis (I don't think this man has ever given a bad performance) and Jonathan Silverman (quite surprising), but the film clearly belongs to Whitaker. A place in American history that has gotten forgotten and buried over the years. A must-see for history buffs.