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{ "item_title" : "Shadows", "item_author" : [" Anthony Ray", "Ben Carruthers "], "item_description" : "When actor John Cassavetes, frustrated with the lack of reality in movies in the late 1950s, decided to direct his own low-budget film, a new form of cinema was born. Defined as an improvisation in the closing credits, SHADOWS concerns three New York siblings whose mixed racial backgrounds create tension in their relationships. Hugh (Hugh Herd) is a dark-skinned jazz singer who can only find work that belittles his talent; Lelia (Lelia Goldoni), a light-skinned aspiring writer; and Ben (Ben Carruthers), the youngest, a light-skinned ladies man who spends his nights searching with his white friends for conquests. Hugh and Ben argue over Ben's inability to accept his racial background, an issue that reaches its boiling point when Lelia develops a relationship with Tony (Anthony Ray), a racist. The film boasts a gritty, compelling style, and Charles Mingus's bouncy jazz score enhances the frenetic camera work to give it a documentary-like feel. The performances, all naturalistic and seemingly unrehearsed, add even greater realism to Cassavetes's vision, resulting in a visionary work that is widely considered the first independent American film.", "item_img_path" : "http://media.aent-m.com/graphics/items/sdimages/a/500/0/8/7/8/2008780.jpg", "price_data" : { "retail_price" : "15.99", "our_price" : "15.99", "club_price" : "15.99", "savings_pct" : "0", "savings_amt" : "0.00", "club_savings_pct" : "0", "club_savings_amt" : "0.00", "discount_pct" : "10" } }
Shadows|Anthony Ray

Shadows

Anthony Ray and Ben Carruthers
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Overview

When actor John Cassavetes, frustrated with the lack of reality in movies in the late 1950s, decided to direct his own low-budget film, a new form of cinema was born. Defined as "an improvisation" in the closing credits, SHADOWS concerns three New York siblings whose mixed racial backgrounds create tension in their relationships. Hugh (Hugh Herd) is a dark-skinned jazz singer who can only find work that belittles his talent; Lelia (Lelia Goldoni), a light-skinned aspiring writer; and Ben (Ben Carruthers), the youngest, a light-skinned ladies man who spends his nights searching with his white friends for conquests. Hugh and Ben argue over Ben's inability to accept his racial background, an issue that reaches its boiling point when Lelia develops a relationship with Tony (Anthony Ray), a racist. The film boasts a gritty, compelling style, and Charles Mingus's bouncy jazz score enhances the frenetic camera work to give it a documentary-like feel. The performances, all naturalistic and seemingly unrehearsed, add even greater realism to Cassavetes's vision, resulting in a visionary work that is widely considered the first independent American film.

Awards:

Main Cast & Crew:
John Cassavetes - Director
Anthony Ray
Ben Carruthers
Hugh Hurd
Lelia Goldoni
Rupert Crosse
Bob Rech
Cliff Carnell
David Jones
Dennis Sallas
Greta Thyssen

Details

    Blu-Ray Disc Format
  • Format: Blu-ray
  • Color Format: B&W
  • UPC: 5035673011256
  • Genre: DRAMA

Movie Reviews

Synopsis:
A tough-minded black jazz trumpeter slogs through a series of performances in ratty bars and strip clubs, while his lighter-skinned younger siblings enjoy--at least temporarily--the various privileges of "passing" in Manhattan's white power elite. This entirely improvised film marks independent pioneer John Cassavetes's (who had been primarily an actor) first directorial project, and contains many of the trademark devices that made his later films as challenging and influential as his debut.

Notes:
Theatrical release (New York City): March 21, 1961. The New York release of the film was as the East attraction at the Embassy Theatre. SHADOWS was filmed in New York City on a budget of approximately $40,000. The film was first shown at the Venice Film Festival in September 1960, where it won the Critics Prize, then released in London at the Academy Theatre on October 14, 1960. SHADOWS was added to the Library of Congress National Film Registry in 1993. The film was originally shot without a script as an improvisation. At the premiere, the audience roundly disliked the film, except for legendary New York underground critic Jonas Mekas, who proclaimed it "a masterpiece." Discouraged, Cassavetes reshot the entire film, using a screenplay he had written; this second version is the film that was eventually released. Faces International and Gena Productions were both production companies run by John Cassavetes. Although the film was initially released without a rating, it has since been rated PG for its video release.

Reviews:
"...Startling....A raw, fresh slice of life..." - 07/25/2002 Los Angeles Times, p.C38


"...[The film] influenced a wave of filmmakers....Goldoni is spectacular here..." - 05/22/1998 USA Today, p.6E


"Fresh and vital, SHADOWS became a landmark for US indie cinema." - 10/01/2005 Uncut, p.142-143


4 stars out of 5 -- "[B]rave and heartfelt....It's a rare snapshot of ordinary people from a time in which the film industry was interested in anything but." - 06/01/2012 Total Film

BAM Customer Reviews