moonspinner55 Review of Bright Road

Bright Road (1953)

Scrubbed-clean scenario is a variation on a way of life long since passed...

[6/10 · 4 January 2006]

Dorothy Dandridge downplays her gorgeousness as a determined young schoolteacher in the South who tries to help a struggling student; Harry Belafonte, in his film debut, plays the school principal who encourages her sincere feelings and enthusiasm (he also sings a little with his guitar). Based on Mary Elizabeth Vroman's short story, "Bright Road" is a sweet and well-meaning family film, but hardly deep or profound. It's also somewhat Anglo-ized; with 95% of the cast black, the picture surprisingly pays very little attention to race (it's the opposite of stereotyping, the scenario has been scrubbed clean). Director Gerald Mayer's tone is dreamy (some might say muted), but the kids are engaging and Dandridge exceptional. Cinematographer Alfred Gilks gets a fresh, homespun look for the picture. A minor effort that might have stood some dramatic tension, though it stays in one's memory. **1/2 from ****