Nothing But a Man [Blu-ray] [Criterion Collection]

Director: Michael Roemer Michael Roemer

Overview

Filmmakers Robert Young and Michael Roemer had originally planned to make a documentary on the experiences of an average southern black man; the result was the fictional but nonetheless realistic Nothing But a Man. Ivan Dixon stars as an African-American railroad worker who can't seem to assume any responsibilities in his private life. When he falls in love with the daughter (Abbey Lincoln) of a minister, the girl's father tells him to get lost until he can get his act together. Dixon doesn't want to commit himself to marriage, nor does he approve of the minister's subservient attitude toward whites, so he wanders about aimlessly, touching bases with the woman (Gloria Foster) who bore him his child, and with his alcoholic father. He also experiences brief, ugly spurts of racism which make him question his own shaky values. The death of his father causes Dixon to wake up and smell the coffee; if he doesn't want to end his life used up and without dignity, he'd better get a handle on his future existence. A stellar attraction of the 1964 New York Film Festival, Nothing But a Man was rightly praised for the universality of the "getting hold of your life" theme, which transcended the racial boundaries set up in the storyline.

Product Details

Release Date:	02/20/2024
UPC:	0715515292917
Original Release:	1964
Source:	Criterion Collection
Language:	English
Time:	1:31:00
Sales rank:	8,315

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Ivan Dixon	Duff Anderson
Abbey Lincoln	Josie
Gloria Foster	Lee
Julius Harris	Will Anderson
Martin Priest	Driver
Leonard Parker	Frankie
Yaphet Kotto	Jocko
Stanley Greene	Rev. Dawson
Helen Lounck	Effie Simms
Helene Arrindell	Doris
Walter Wilson	Car Owner
Milton Williams	Pop
Mel Stewart	Raddick
Alfred Puryear	Barney
Charles MacRae	Joe
Ed Rowan	Willie
Tom Ligon	Teenager
William Jordan	Teenager
Gertrude Jeanette	Mrs. Dawson
Richard Weber	Bud Ellis
Eugene Wood	Schoolteacher
Jim Wright	Bartender
Jary Banks	Bessie
Dorothy Hall	Soloist
Gil Rogers	Mill Foreman
Arland Schubert	Hiring Boss
Bill Riola	Ginn Foreman
Peter Carew	Store Keeper
Jay Brooks	Undertaker
Richard Ward	Mill Hand
Moses Gunn	Mill Hand
Sylvia Ray	Church Woman
Esther Rolle	Church Woman
Esther Davis	Church Woman
Helene Anindell	Doris
Robert Berger	Desk Clerk
William Phillips	Car Passenger

Technical Credits

Michael Roemer

Robert Young

Michael Roemer	Director,Producer,Screenwriter
Robert Rubin	Producer
Robert Young	Screenwriter,Producer
Robert Rubin	Sound/Sound Designer