I watched this today, and was so impressed I had to share my thoughts on it. Firstly, I love Poitier, and own many of his films from his incredible run of the 60's. He may have won the Oscar for Lilies of the Field, but I always thought he was better in quite a few other movies, and now this one joins them. In fact, I think in this film he was much, much better. And it's also interesting in that Walter Lee is a flawed character, in some ways. In some other movies Poitier's almost too perfect.
The supporting cast are incredible too. Claudia McNeil should have at least received a nomination for best supporting actress, And Ruby Dee... I can't get over how young and pretty she is, having only ever seen her playing mothers and grandmas up to now. Watching this, I kept thinking of another play turned movie, A Streetcar Named Desire. While Raisin is no Streetcar, it is a similarly powerful, moving piece of work and acting masterclass.
The supporting cast are incredible too. Claudia McNeil should have at least received a nomination for best supporting actress, And Ruby Dee... I can't get over how young and pretty she is, having only ever seen her playing mothers and grandmas up to now. Watching this, I kept thinking of another play turned movie, A Streetcar Named Desire. While Raisin is no Streetcar, it is a similarly powerful, moving piece of work and acting masterclass.