Posted by HJIsaiah 11:6 ("...and a little child shall lead them....") might have been an influence on this movie in several ways. The love of all adults for a small child is the common plot element thread in this movie, and the discovery made by another small child leads to the denouement.
A lovely little African-American girl headed for school goes skipping through a meadow and falls into a well whose opening was hidden by some high weeds growing around it. Her distraught parents report her absence to a genuinely-concerned Sheriff, who in turn begins a routine search. When it's reported that an adult white male had bought the little girl some flowers that morning, things begin to unravel, and the routine search turns into a major operation!
On the surface, the town (probably Midwestern) appears to have no racial problems of significant proportions, but when the Black population hears that a white man was last seen with little Carolyn, racial tensions surface. And when the white man is discovered and subjected to a vigorous and accusatory interrogation by the Sheriff and his deputies, the reactionaries among the white populace begin fomenting violence against the African-American citizens. The African-American community is incensed that a white man may be responsible for the disappearance of little Carolyn and begins to confront the white racists.
The Sheriff sees the very real threat of a full-blown race riot and asks the Mayor to request State Militia assistance, while beginning to arm both Black and white Civil Defense volunteers with riot guns. This missing little girl has become less of an immediate issue than the mounting racial tensions.
Fortunately a little boy and his dog happen to be going through the meadow in which the well is located and find evidence that little Carolyn may be in the well. The child gets the word to the adults, and a rescue effort is mounted.
The racist owner of Packard's Construction Company, Sam Packard (played by Barry Kelley, who looks like a cross between Broderick Crawford and Richard Herd) makes all his equipment and laborers available for the exploration and rescue effort. And Sam Packard's nephew Claude Packard (played by Harry Morgan), the white man thought to be involved in Carolyn's disappearance, swallows the anger he feels at his treatment to become very personally involved in the effort to rescue the little girl. Harry Morgan gets to play the part of the Hero!
The first 45-50 minutes of this movie are quite Noir, but the last 35-40 minutes are involved with the rescue operation. DON'T let that convince you that this movie isn't worth the watch! It's a very enjoyable film, and I will be among the first to buy the restored version when it soon becomes available.
So a little child precipitated the situation, and the caring for her welfare began the reconciliation. And another little child's discovery of the well began the realization that little Carolyn was far more important than the racial divide.
1 comments:
Good one. I just watched this last night. Ahead of its time. Nice writeup.
FYI, the Image DVD release is a bit overpriced at $20, particularly a line runs through much of the film. Plus, no extras. But it's good to have it.
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