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“Everything wants to be loved. Us sing and dance and holler, just trying to be loved.”
-Alice Walker
If you are accustomed to Alice Walker’s masterpiece ‘The Color Purple, you know how beautiful and moving the story really is. ‘The Color Purple came out as a movie in 1985. It is an American, coming-of-age period drama film.
The film tells the story of a young African-American girl named Celie Harris and entails the struggles that the women of American- American origin faced during the early 20th century that involved rape, molestation, incest, pedophilia, domestic abuse, and sexual violence against these women, in addition to poverty and racism.
Introduction
Name of the Movie - The Color Purple
Directed By - Steven Spielberg
Screenplay By - Menno Meyjes
Starring - Whoopi Goldberg as Celie, Oprah Winfrey as Sofia, Margaret Avery as Shug Avery, Danny Glover as Albert, and Akosua Busia as Nettie
Genre - Bildungsroman, Epistolary Novel
Language - English
Duration - 2 hours and 33 minutes
Synopsis - Spoiler Alert!
Celie Harris is a teenage African-American girl living in rural Georgia in the early twentieth century who has lost two children to her abusive father. He sells her as a wife to "Mister" Albert Johnson, who abuses her and mistreats her with his children.
Nettie, Celie's beloved younger sister, flees her abusive father and seeks refuge with Celie. If the sisters are separated, they agree to write to each other. Mister attempts to sexually assault Nettie and kicks her out of his home when she refuses to acquiesce.
Years later, Celie has become meek as a result of her maltreatment. Celie is taken aback when Mister's son Harpo marries Sofia, and she finds herself in charge of a matriarchal home. Harpo tries but fails to overpower and strike Sofia.
Harpo is advised by Celie to defeat Sofia. Sofia responds by confronting Celie and admitting her long history of abuse. She threatens to kill Harpo and instructs Celie to do the same to Mister if he hits her again.
Plot Overview
Albert’s mistress Shug Avery, who is a showgirl comes to town and when she falls ill Albert decides to bring her home. Celie is immediately smitten by Shrug but the latter is not very kind to her in the beginning.
Soon they establish a kind of friendship and Celie talks to her about stuff. Albert and Shug sleep together and Celie does not seem to mind. Celie confides in Shug that Mister hits her, and Shug informs Celie that she is relocating to Memphis.
Shug compliments Celie on her beauty and tells her that she is loved, and the two kiss. Celie prepares to follow Shug to Memphis, but she is apprehended by Mister. Meanwhile, Sofia lands in jail after striking the mayor after he slapped her.
Years pass and Sofia is released only to become a maid at the mayor's house. Shug returns with her husband Grady, which makes both Celie and Albert equally uncomfortable. On the same day, Shug finds some letters in the mailbox from Nettie, Celie’s sister, which leaves Celie heartbroken. Shug and Celie search the house for more letters and find a lot of them hidden in Albert’s safe.
Celie begins to read her sister’s letters and traverses the world through her letters. At a family gathering, Celie speaks for herself and stands up to Albert for all that he has done, and tells him that she is leaving with Shug. Albert threatens her but to no accord. Celie leaves for Memphis with Shug and Grady.
Shug reunites with her father, a pastor, years later after years of silence due to the life route she took. Mister is an elderly and lonely man, and Harpo has made amends with Sofia; the two now co-own the bar, and Shug continues to perform there. Celie learns from Nettie's letters that her father wasn't their real father after all after his death. When their mother died, they were devastated.
Celie starts her own tailoring business. Mister receives a letter from Nettie addressed to Celie, withdraws funds from his hidden bank account, and arranges for Nettie, her husband, and Celie's children to return to the United States from Africa, where they had been living with giraffes in the plains. Celie, Nettie, and Celie's children reunite, and the two sisters bonk as Mister watches from afar.
The Bottom Line
The movie, although not extraordinary by contemporary standards, is definitely exemplary for its times. Whoopi Goldberg has portrayed the character of Celie marvelously. Not to mention Oprah Winfrey’s stellar performance as the strong and awesome Sofia. ‘The Color Purple’ is a close enough representation of the book and if you’ve read the book, you’ll love the movie.
My Ratings for the Movie - 5 on 5
For more such reviews visit - Eat My News
Written By - Sakshi Singh
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