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Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Since 1996 |
Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Killer of Sheep (re-release) Stars: Kaycee Moore, Henry G. Sanders, Charles Bracy, Angela Burnett, Eugene Cherry and Jack Drummond Director:/Scriptwriter Charles Burnett Milestone Films (re-release of a 1977 black and white film) Rating: R Running Length: 82 minutes Note: Killer of Sheep is on the National Film Registry by the National Film Preservation Board. Killer of Sheep (referring to a job in a slaughterhouse) was a student film in 1977 for rising filmmaker Charles Burnett. The cast includes just about anyone who could double as an actor, and this, in itself, lends a naturalness to the thread of a storyline. Shot on a budget of about $20,000 (actually a lot in 1977), the film runs under 85 minutes. The soundtrack is also what makes this film interesting. You hear popular songs of the time sung by singers of that time, including Dinah Washington doing “Unforgettable.” This is why the re-release of Killer of Sheep took so long. Copyrights had to be tracked down. Killer of Sheep is actually a series of vignettes about life in Watts. We follow Stan (Henry G. Sanders) from work in a slaughterhouse of sheep to home and relaxing on weekends with his friends. We may think of Stan’s life as right on the poverty level, but he doesn’t. When questioned about his work and home, he declares, “I give to the Salvation Army, that’s better than some.” Stan’s wife is the lithesome Kaycee Moore, who manages to be a kind of peace-maker and advice-giver to him. We also follow a group of boys about twelve years old, who have nothing to do and end up by railroad tracks. There seems to be no other place to go and you wonder what will happen to them in years to come. What we do see is that some people have trouble that follows them everywhere. When you see Stan and his friends go for a drive to pick up a possible winning race track bet, and everyone piles into the car--- you know something will happen. The film is almost in documentary-style. The black and white photography in Killer of Sheep has poignant shots, such as framing people in doorways and you never know if they are going to go back into the house and their regular lives, or venture out toward the camera and something new. People have hope even though their situation in life may seem hopeless to others. Friendships bring happiness and you can work through just about anything if someone is by your side. This is unlike the sheep in the slaughterhouse that don’t have a choice about their fate. Copyright 2007 Marie Asner
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