The Defiant Ones

The Defiant Ones is an American film producer, director and drama of the Stanley Kramer from the year 1958.

Action

The two prisoners John ' Joker ' Jackson and Noah Cullen can escape during a prison transfer. By chains are bound together and must resolve to the success of their escape personal problems with each other. This is not so simple, because John is full of White racial prejudice, while the colored Noah occurs loudmouthed.

As the film progresses, the two become friends. At the farm a widowed young woman they first find shelter and be able to escape with the help of the local equipment of the chain. John and the woman come closer together. When approaching their pursuers, the two make plans to run away with the existing cars in the yard. Noah is sent by the farmer in a supposedly safe direction to the next track. When John learns that Noah was lied to, there's a deadly swamp between the farm and the railroad track, it leaves the farmer, where he is shot by the son of the woman and brings Noah in order to warn him.

Together they make it to the web while approaching the police. Noah plays on a car of a passing train and is therefore saved from persecution, but he does not succeed, pull up the weakened John. Then Noah jumps down again. The injured John cautious and singing in the arm he expects the sheriff.

Trivia

The theme of the film, racism in the U.S., in the late 1950s was a hot iron. The first choice for the role of the Joker was Robert Mitchum. But then media reports, he should have refused to "play with a Negro ." This was denied by Tony Curtis, who took over the role of the Joker, in his autobiography. Marlon Brando and even Kirk Douglas was for this role in the conversation but two was not uneasy about the topic and they said from.

The Defiant Ones is one of the few films that do entirely without film music. The only music that is heard, coming from the transistor radio of the sheriff.

Tony Curtis advocated that his co-star Sidney Poitier got a reasonable salary, which was not common to that time for an African American actor.

Reviews

  • The German film industry magazine Focus on Film praised the film for its invocation against racism and the acting performances from Sidney Poitier and Tony Curtis.
  • Reclams Movie Guide: A well-meaning film, which also realistic and exciting designed in detail and consistently played well is. Overall, however, affects the drama too schematic. The welcome commitment to racial hatred is dealt with too didactic.
  • Filmdienst: Thrilling, visually strong and excellent mock movie - perhaps a little clearer than in its moral intentions.

Awards

At the Golden Globe Awards 1959 flight was in chains - win the prize for the best film in the drama category - with nominations in six categories.

At the Oscars the year he was even nominated in nine categories, but could only into two categories, Best Cinematography ( black and white film ) and Best Original Screenplay, winning.

In the same year he received the New York Film Critics Circle Award.

Sidney Poitier won the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the Berlin Film Festival in 1958 for his role in this film.

Remake

So far, three times the history of the escape of two prisoners with different skin color was retold:

  • For the American television action with the performer Robert Urich and Carl Weathers was remade in 1986. The German title is also Defiant Ones.
1958 in film Harold Jacob Smith Film score Ernest Gold (composer) Sam Leavitt Frederic Knudtson Academy Award for Best Cinematography Pam Grier The Pride and the Passion On the Beach (1959 film) Ship of Fools (film) The Secret of Santa Vittoria
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