art & design
The 5 Film Sidney Poitier Education
When talking about the greatest actors of the 20th Century, Sidney Poitier undoubtedly makes the list. One of the first African-Americans to star in major Hollywood productions, Poitier is the Jackie Robinson of actors, helping to effectively break down the color barrier in cinema. Yet aside from the rare appearance, like presenting the Lifetime Achievement award at this year’s Golden Globes, few young people know Sidney Poitier or his work. Below are 5 must-see films for a crash course in this legend’s career.
No Way Out
Poitier’s first substantial film role came in Darryl F. Zanuck’s No Way Out where he played a doctor trying to treat a dying racist. His natural poise and talent were impossible to ignore from the very beginning, and this hard-hitting film would launch his career.
The Defiant Ones
Poitier garnered his first Academy Award nomination as an escaped convict chained to Tony Curtis in this jail-break drama. A critical and commercial smash, this 1958 film finally placed Poitier among the elite actors of his generation.
Lilies of the Field
Poitier plays a construction worker who rebuilds a church for nuns in the desert in this starkly beautiful, near-perfect film. The story focuses almost entirely on Poitier and he made the most of the opportunity, winning the Oscar for Best Actor in 1964, the first African-American to ever do so.
In the Heat of the Night
You can’t know about Sidney Poitier and not see In the Heat of the Night, the Academy Award winning film about an African-American detective who goes to investigate a murder in a Southern town. Coinciding with the climax of the Civil Rights movement, Poitier became even more iconic an actor.
Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?
The same year In the Heat of the Night was released, Poitier starred in another racially charged film about a white couple who meet their daughter’s black fiancé. His second film with legendary director Stanley Kramer is arguably his best.
Catch Sidney Poitier’s Oscar-winning performance in Lilies of the Field, January 19th at 8pm & 10pm EST, only on Ovation!
Sam Feeder is a poet/writer/photographer who works primarily in Los Angeles and Austin. Feeder is a careful observer and tries to experience as many different aspects of life as possible, ranging from travels all over the world to discovering that hole-in-the-wall restaurant or bar no one knows about.
Image: Lilies of the Field
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