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Down in the Delta
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Wikipedia article
'Down in the Delta' is a 1998 American-Canadian drama film, directed by Maya Angelou in her sole film directorial effort and starring Alfre Woodard, Al Freeman, Jr., Esther Rolle (in her final film appearance before her death), Loretta Devine, and Wesley Snipes.
Plot
Rosa Lynn Sinclair, an elderly woman, lives in a Chicago housing project with her daughter Loretta and her two grandchildren, four-year-old Tracy (who is autistic) and thirteenyear-old Thomas. Disappointed in Loretta's life choices and afraid of the troubled circumstances surrounding her grandson Thomas, Rosa Lynn decides to send her daughter and grandchildren to visit with her brother-in-law in Mississippi for the summer.
Loretta, a drug addict, declines to go, especially since her uncle Earl lives in the dry and rural part of Mississippi and already juggles his business and a wife, Annie, who has Alzheimer's disease and is being cared for by a housekeeper. Before they depart, Rosa Lynn pawns a silver candelabra, a family heirloom they refer to as "Nathan", the name of their slave ancestor. Exiting the pawn shop, Loretta throws the pawn ticket in a wastebasket, but then retrieves it, intending to redeem Nathan later for drugs.
Earl, a wise man of few words, welcomes the trio to rural Mississippi. Earl puts Loretta to work in his chicken joint, Just Chicken, where she initially has trouble handling the work and the demands of a schedule. Eventually, however, the family begin to find strength in their roots, and start to rebuild their lives, with Thomas teaching Loretta enough arithmetic to be able to waitress and thus make more in tips, Loretta becoming friendly with a nice local customer named Carl (Nigel Shawn Williams), and Tracy actually saying her first words.
While a few calamities ensue, one involving Earl teaching Thomas about guns and the other when Annie wanders outside unsupervised, by the end of the summer the initially sullen Loretta decides to stay on and make her life in the delta. In the final scene, Earl reveals that Loretta's great-great-grandfather, a slave named Nathan, was traded for the silver candelabra. Nathan's son Jesse stole back the candelabra, which has since been passed through the generations, along with Nathan's story.
Cast
* Alfre Woodard as Loretta Sinclair
* Al Freeman Jr. as Earl Sinclair
* Esther Rolle as Annie Sinclair
* Mary Alice as Rosa Lynn Sinclair
* Loretta Devine as Zenia
* Wesley Snipes as Will Sinclair
* Anne-Marie Johnson as Monica Sinclair
* Mpho Koaho as Thomas Sinclair
* Justin Lord as Dr. Rainey
* Kulani Hassen as Tracy Sinclair
* Sandra Caldwell as Volunteer
* Colleen Williams as Tourist Woman
* Richard Blackburn as Tourist Man
* Philip Akin as Manager
* Mary Fallick as Drug Addict
* Sandi Ross as Pawnbroker
* Barbara Barnes-Hopkins as Prim Woman
* Richard Yearwood as Marco
* Troy Seivwright-Adams as Collin
* Kevin Duhaney as Justin
Music
The following soundtrack was released by Virgin Records.
# "Believe in Love" - Sunday (featuring Whitney Houston)
# "God's Stepchild" - Janet Jackson
# "Heaven Must Be Like This" - D'Angelo
# "If Ever" - Stevie Wonder
# "Where Would I Be" - The Leverts (Eddie, Gerald, and Sean)
# "I'm Only Human" - Luther Vandross (featuring Cassandra Wilson and Bob James)
# "Just A Little Luv" - Shawn Stockman
# "We Belong Together" - Tony Thompson And Antoinette
# "Don't Talk 2 Strangers" - Chaka Khan
# "Let It Go" - Jazzyfatnastees featuring The Roots
# "My Soul Don't Dream" - Meshell N'degeocello & Keb' Mo'
# "Uh Uh Ooh Ooh Look Out Here It Comes" - Ashford & Simpson
# "Don't Let Nuthin' Keep You Down" - Sounds of Blackness
# "Family (Score)" - Stanley Clarke
# "The Rain" - Tracie Spencer
# "Patchwork Quilt" - Sweet Honey in the Rock
Reception
Box office
The film was successful on limited release.Critical response
Alfre Woodard's work drew praise from 'San Francisco Chronicle' reviewer Peter Stack, who lauded her for "a beautifully layered performance...Woodard is magical as a single mother haunted by drugs, alcohol and an inadequate education. She almost single-handedly shores up this somewhat simplistic movie...[h]er instincts for drama and humor provide a welcome dose of human reality, saving a script that veers toward the sentimental."References
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