π Overview:
A black and white, fantasy-like recreation of high-society gay men during the Harlem Renaissance, with archival footage and photographs intercut with a story. A wake is going on, with mourners gathered around a coffin. Downstairs is an elegant bar where tuxedoed men dance and talk. One of them has a dream in which he comes upon Beauty, who seems to reject him, although when he awakes, Beauty is sleeping beside him. His story and his visits to the jazz and dance club are framed by voices reading from the poetry and essays of Hughes and others. The text is rarely explicit, but the freedom of gay Black men in the 1920s in Harlem is suggested and celebrated visually.
π Languages Available:
English
π Date Released:
1989-10-31
β Running Time:
45 mins
β Vote Average:
5.2
Beloved Cast
Alex
Ben Ellison
Beauty
Matthew Baidoo
James
Akim Mogaji
Karl
John Wilson
Marcus
Dencil Williams
Dean
Guy Burgess
Carlos
Dublin James Wahlberg
Leatherboy
Harry Donaldson
Angel
Jimmy Somerville
Himself (archive footage)
Langston Hughes
British voice (voice)
Stuart Hall