VividSimon Simply Perfect

Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Pluskylang Great Film overall

Claysaba Excellent, Without a doubt!!

NateWatchesCoolMovies John Singleton's Rosewood is a partly fictionalized, greatly dramatized retelling of one of the largest lynchings and subsequent conflicts in American history. The time is 1923, the place is Rosewood, a small southern town populated largely by African communities. When borderline insane local housewife Fanny (Catherine Kellner) is caught in the midst of a violent sexual fling, a young black man accidentally stumbles upon the scene. Being the crazy bitch she is, she melodramatically pins it on him, inciting the wrath of the town. The real culprit was of course a white dude, played briefly by Robert Patrick before fleeing the county for good. Because of this selfish misdirection, every white man and his mother now wants the boy hung, and it escalates with the speed of a prairie fire until a full scale race war rages through Rosewood. A lone mercenary called Mann (Ving Rhames) happens to be around and lends his quickdraw talents to the townsfolk who are being hunted. The sheriff (Michael Rooker) is somewhat of a pushover, and unable to quell the mob anyway, especially when it's led by a rabid Bruce McGill, who is scary and then some. The only white boy who has anything but ropes or torches to offer these poor folks is a kindly store owner played by Jon Voight, who shelters a group of them on his property, much to the mob's anger. Voight's character is odd; when we meet him he is in heated coitus with one of his shopkeeps, a young African girl. It's later revealed that she's afraid of him. Despite this dark piece of his arc, Singleton treats him as a hero, begging the question, were there scenes cut that elaborated on his relationship with her? Such imbalances in tone can be found in the story as well: much of the film is treated with a combination of severe melodrama and true crime drama, speckled here and there with jarring little bits of pulp that feel like they're from a Django type flick. Wouldn't have been the narrative mix I would have used, but perhaps Singleton's hand slipped and too much of an aspect fell in which he only ever meant as a subtle garnish. Nevertheless, it's very solidly made, wherever it sits on the genre map, with all the actors, particularly the African townsfolk, shining nicely. It's disturbing as well, with the black body count reaching sickening heights and the racist fever at a vicious spike in temperature. It's a scary scenario when the hunters greatly outnumber the hunted, and mass deaths are imminent, especially when such anger is involved. Sympathy is earned in spades from the viewer, as well as the urge to look away at least a few different times. I haven't done my research on the real story so I couldn't tell you where it falls on the authenticity charts, but I suspect a great deal of it has been exaggerated for effect and impact. In that, it succeeds, if faltering in tone a few times to puzzle the viewer, before getting back on track.

tom jones This movie was to my liking, it had all the action oriented scenes placed together to keep the viewer interested. The characters were fairly mysterious incorporating wanderers of the town and a heavy set of anti-semetism combined with promiscuity and adulteress affairs. What happened in rosewood was a supposed intervention or clash, not a massacre but maybe a clash of culture. This movie depicts that aspect of rosewood quite well, until maybe the climax where the whole town revolts. The lynchings were due to migration, Florida was heavily under influence of migration ever since the civil war due to lack of farming. The residents did not want to be involved but in fact if rosewood hadnt occurred the whole town would have been forgotten and abandoned. They merely killed themselves because the africans reacted too harshly and triggered a devastating response. It is said they shot the officers or town residents due to infringement in privacy. The anti-semetism involved was far too extreme even for white people. Historically speaking though, the movie turned into t2 judgement day or some sort of action thriller apocalypse, the good guy was prostituting himself with the town folks...maybe he deserved to be 'caught up.' It was just not realistic or believable imho...which puts me to an odds end to where these categories truly fall under. Based on a true story or Based on true events. Authentic movies that I have seen before which portray real events quit accurately are not apocalypse now, titanic or Apollo 13 but documented based movies such as boogie nights, fire in the sky, or mobster movies with the likes of Scarface & Goodfellas where the actual events look like they could have actually played out in that fashion. If you like the latter, you'll like this movie.If the film is good its because it was for the viewer to interpret it correctly. What I think it was is that the wife with diabetes is the murderer whom got shot's wife. The murderer john d or watever is probably the guy at the end. There was probably two murderers he was chasing which he encountered before being knocked out. His wife prob died. The diabetic is probably one of the murderer's wives. Then the movie may be good..okay.

Steve Pulaski John Singleton's Rosewood documents the tragedy of the Rosewood Massacre in piercingly raw detail, showing us how a prosperous Florida town fell to shambles from one woman's lie, spawning over a hundred murders and massive calamity on the survivor's shoulders for years to come. This event occurred in 1923, but is usually left unprinted in history textbooks and shoved to the side as if it had never occurred. Just a few weeks ago, a gunman opened fire on patrons in a movie theater, killing twelve and wounding fifty eight. That story was the most talked about thing for the entire week and still sneaks its way into the top story.Rosewood isn't written with anger, hostility, or a burdening grudge. It is written with its mind firmly centered on history and examination rather than shameful exploitation. The town of Rosewood was populated mainly by blacks who are also operating most of it, with the notable exception of the white grocery store owner, Mr. Wright (Jon Voight). About 1/3 of the town is white, and most have a great disdain for the blacks, which as we know by now wasn't atypical.The film centers mainly on Mann (Ving Rhames), a World War I veteran who travels aimlessly on a horse in search of land that he is willing to pay good money for. When he shows up at a town auction and becomes one of the highest bidders, he does nothing but generate sneers and racist remarks from the patrons. Mann is, for the most part, impassive towards the criticism. One of his friends that he grows closer to over time is Don Cheadle's Sylvester, who happens to be one of the strongest character actors of this or any other decade.The hostility towards blacks skyrockets when the mentally unstable woman, Fanny Taylor (Catherine Kellner) is triggered into a screaming frenzy repeatedly saying a black man beat her, but did not rape her. The reality is, Fanny is a victim to the abuse of her lover, who consistently throws her around and leaves her bruised and battered. Regardless, there is simply no justification for this kind of impulsiveness.And thus, the bell begins to ring louder and for longer and the towers slowly begin to fall; the town becomes even more racially divided than before, violence breaks out in the streets, houses are burned, neighbors become enemies, and secrets holding important, valuable information are kept until it's too late. A white sheriff (Michael Rooker) has an understanding of the events that occurred with Fanny Taylor, begins to piece together that the story of the evil black man beating the white woman is a myth, but is unfortunately silent about the event until violence overwhelms the once humble town. Even Mann grows aware of the impending violence and unsafe nature of this town, and fears because of his "new" status that he will fall victim to murder.The film touches on some other topics not usually explored in a period piece, such as how the idea of racism is spread through explicit teachings from father to son. One father teaches his son how to make a noose, and continuously reminds him that the blacks are the enemies in which the whites must take action against. This even involves the father taking the son along on trips where they go hunting, and I don't mean for animals.Writer Gregory Poirier illustrates this story on a large, limitless canvas for John Singleton to direct with a looming challenge. There is an unusually broad amount of talent here and a plethora of characters and situations to document, and Poirier is careful never to spend too much time on one specific situation, but takes the time to balance the events out evenly. It wasn't long before this that Singleton constructed Boyz N The Hood, a film detailing the tribulations of growing up on the wrong side of the street. That appears on my list of most captivating dramas for its poignant dialog and incredible performances. Rosewood is in an entirely different league; a film that features many different scenes, all highly detailed and illustrated intricately, that is strung together by an easily understandable story.Speaking in terms of aesthetics, the costume and set design here is lavish and meticulous. From the sets of the stores, to the simplicity of the roads, the people, the clothing, and the shops, everything is portrayed in such a refreshingly different light that it becomes indescribably powerful. The care and attention here is not only commendable, but award worthy.Yet sadly, Rosewood, like the actual event, is a long forgotten wave in the ocean of cinema and the world. The film's hefty budget, for which I assumed was mainly used on costumes, set structures, and actors, proved unable to be recouped and went on to become a commercial failure, only seen by those brave enough to endure its tragedy with an open mind and a hungering for knowledge. This is not a movie that many will be able to digest easy. It's a long and brutal picture. But one that is masterfully done in almost every respect and one that should brew a healthy, informative conversation soon afterwards.Starring: Jon Voight, Ving Rhames, Don Cheadle, Bruce McGill, Loren Dean, Esther Rolle, Elise Neal, and Michael Rooker. Directed by: John Singleton.

TOMASBBloodhound Rosewood is a skillfully made and effective depiction of the destruction of a small Florida town populated almost exclusively by blacks. Though the story is shamefully true, the violence here is probably exaggerated to for dramatic effect. That doesn't make the actual event any less despicable, however. John Singleton shows his skills are not limited to filming inner-city strife, as he weaves a rich and multi-layered recreation of this tragedy. There are many strengths to this film. It is no surprise that it failed at the box office, though. A film like this has a hard time finding an audience that wishes to sit through such savage brutality.Early on we are introduced to the residents to two small rural Florida towns. Rosewood, a semi-prosperous town where blacks own just about everything and live in peace. And Sumner, a logging town populated by seemingly lower class whites. By all accounts these two towns coexisted peacefully for years until one day a woman's lie destroys everything. A young married woman is beaten by her lover (a white man) one afternoon, and blames it on a black man she cannot identify. Word has already been spreading about a black man who has escaped from a nearby chain gang. Could he have done it?, the whites wonder as they get liquored up and start tying nooses. Or was it the mysterious "Mr. Mann" who shows up in Rosewood on a nice horse carrying a wad of cash and looking to buy some land? Anyway, the white mob quickly gets out of control and starts harassing and killing any blacks they can find. It seems more than anything they are jealous of the residents of Rosewood and are using this excuse to burn them out. Can tough guy Ving Rhames get the women and children out before the crackers get them? Tune in and watch.There are a great many strengths about this film. The locations and photography are lush and beautiful. Some of the most ugly acts imaginable are filmed so beautifully that you cannot turn away even though you'd like to. John Williams's score is rich and memorable. The acting is uniformly excellent by a great cast. Jon Voight is top billed as the shop keeper who is clearly appalled at the mob's behavior but risks getting burned out himself if he tries to stop them. Michael Rooker gives a great performance as a conflicted sheriff who is powerless to stop anything. Rhames outshines them all as the WWI veteran with a .45 in each hand ready to shoot down the crackers. Though he and his actions are completely fictional, you will remember him most of all. Look for Bruce Mcgill as the lead cracker hiding under a shaggy beard. He will be the man you most love to hate. There is an amazing amount of gun play and even some action sequences. Everything is filmed so beautifully! This is a picture that fell through the cracks and should be remembered. But be warned... you will need a strong stomach to get through many of these scenes. 9 of 10 stars.The Hound.