Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored (1996)
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71% of critics liked it
(14 reviews) -
77% of users liked it
(1,402 ratings)
Actor Tim Reid (WKRP in Cincinnati) made his directorial debut with this filmed adaptation of Clifton L. Taulbert's autobiography. Set in an African-American community in the segregated South, Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored follows a young Taulbert through three decades, beginning with… More Actor Tim Reid (WKRP in Cincinnati) made his directorial debut with this filmed adaptation of Clifton L. Taulbert's autobiography. Set in an African-American community in the segregated South, Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored follows a young Taulbert through three decades, beginning with his birth in a cotton field in 1946. As he grows up, Taulbert is faced with the harsh realities of being black in the mid-20th century: first from the lessons of his great-grandfather (Al Freeman Jr.), later in his trips to the local segregated library, and finally in 1962, when a 16-year-old Taulbert watches as his community deals with a racist white business owner trying to run a local black ice man out of town. Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored was the recipient of the Audience Choice Award at the 1995 St. Louis International Film Festival. ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi
Critic Reviews
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Emanuel Levy, Variety
Based on Clifton Taulbert's book, this sensitive memory film about the author's coming of age in the segregated South is an emotionally quiet saga, plaved against a tumultuous era in black communal life.
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Mike Clark, USA Today
Though the film exhibits a vaguely nostalgic tone, it's hardly sugar-coated, displaying an increasingly discernible edge to its portrayal of racist realities.
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Philip Martin, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Everything about this film bespeaks wholesomeness, from its gentle life lessons to its calm dignity ... (t)hat said, it is not quite as good as some of the hype would have it.
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Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice
Heart-warming drama in which community becomes a seedbed where young souls are forged.
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Steve Rhodes, Internet Reviews
The acting is good all round, but the star of the show has to be Al Freeman Jr. He shows great inner strength, bravery, and intelligence.
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Cast
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Polly Bergen
as Miss Maybry
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Bernie Casey
as Mr. Walter
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Al Freeman Jr.
as Poppa
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Isaac Hayes
as Preacher Hurn
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Damon Hines
as Cliff at 16
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Anna Maria Horsford
as Miss Annie
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Paula Kelly
as Ma Pearl
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Leon
as Uncle Melvin
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Phylicia Rashad
as Ma Ponk
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Salli Richardson
as Miss Alice
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Richard Roundtree
as Cleve
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Charles Earl Taylor
as Cliff at 5
- Karen Malina White
- Taj Mahal
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Iona Morris
as Nila Fontaine
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Willie Norwood Jr.
as Cliff at 12
