''God's Little Acre'' is a 1958 American

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

film of

Erskine Caldwell Erskine Preston Caldwell (December 17, 1903 – April 11, 1987) was an American novelist and short story writer. His writings about poverty, racism and social problems in his native Southern United States, in novels such as '' Tobacco Road'' (1 ...

's 1933 novel of the same name. It was directed by

Anthony Mann Anthony Mann (born Emil Anton Bundsmann; June 30, 1906 – April 29, 1967) was an American film director and stage actor. Mann initially started as a theatre actor appearing in numerous stage productions. In 1937, he moved to Hollywood where ...

and shot in black and white by cinematographer

Ernest Haller Ernest Jacob Haller (May 31, 1896 – October 21, 1970), sometimes known as Ernie J. Haller, was an American cinematographer. He was most notable for his involvement in ''Gone with the Wind'' (1939), and his close professional relationships with ...

. Although the film was not released until August 1958, its production schedule is indicated as September 11 to late October 1957. The film was as controversial as the novel, although unlike its source material it was not subjected to prosecution for obscenity. Although both the book and film were laced throughout with racy innuendo calling into question the issue of marital fidelity, the film adaptation may have been the more alarming because it portrayed a popular uprising, or workers' insurrection, in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

by laid-off millworkers trying to gain control of the factory equipment on which their jobs depended. When the film was first released, audiences under 18 years of age were prohibited from viewing what were perceived to be numerous sexy scenes throughout, although in recent decades the film's scandalous reputation has diminished.

Philip Yordan Philip Yordan (April 1, 1914 – March 24, 2003) was an American screenwriter of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s who produced several films. He acted as a front for blacklisted writers although his use of surrogate screenwriters predates the McCar ...

was officially given credit for the

screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, f ...

, but

Ben Maddow Ben Maddow (born David Wolff, August 7, 1909 in Passaic, New Jersey – October 9, 1992 in Los Angeles, California) was an American screenwriter and documentarian from the 1930s through the 1970s. Educated at Columbia University, Maddow began ...

claimed he wrote it. Since Maddow was

blacklist Blacklisting is the action of a group or authority compiling a blacklist (or black list) of people, countries or other entities to be avoided or distrusted as being deemed unacceptable to those making the list. If someone is on a blacklist, ...

ed for his radical, and suspected but unproven

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...

, activities during the 1950s

Red Scare A Red Scare is the promotion of a widespread fear of a potential rise of communism, anarchism or other leftist ideologies by a society or state. The term is most often used to refer to two periods in the history of the United States which ar ...

, working without credit was the only way he could successfully submit screenplays. After decades of neglect, the film was restored by the

UCLA Film and Television Archive The UCLA Film & Television Archive is a visual arts organization focused on the preservation, study, and appreciation of film and television, based at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Also a nonprofit exhibition venue, the a ...

under the supervision of master restorer Robert Gitt. As part of Gitt's restoration, Yordan's name was removed and replaced by Maddow's in the main titles, although it does not appear on most current releases.

Plot

Widower Ty Ty Walden and his two daughters, Rosamund and Darlin' Jill, live in the backwoods of Georgia during the Great Depression. He also has three sons: Jim, Shaw, and Buck. While Ty Ty searches constantly for gold on his farm, his son-in-law Will cheats on his wife Rosamund with Buck's wife, Griselda. Ty Ty has been digging for gold on his land for 15 years, searching for the treasure his grandfather left him. Consequently, the farm has suffered from many years' neglect. Pluto Swint arrives to announce he's running for sheriff. Swint is invited to come around back where Darlin' Jill is taking a bath in an outdoor bathtub positioned near a handpump and spigot. She asks him to pump some more water, and although Swint is asked to keep his eyes closed, he sneaks a peek. In the belief that having an albino with him in his quest for treasure will bring him great fortune, Ty Ty transports and wrongfully imprisons Dave Dawson, demanding that he help him locate the buried treasure. Dawson, using a divining rod, claims the gold lies on the neighboring church's land (referred to as "God's Little Acre"). Ty Ty pulls the marker out of the ground, explaining that God told him to move it, thereby absolving him from giving any gold found in this new spot to the church. In the middle of the night Will leaves his house, followed by Griselda. He breaks open the mill's gates and enters the property. At first, she distracts him from his purpose, and they kiss. He then escorts her back to the gates and asks the growing crowd to restrain her. He re-enters and turns on the power, and the machines reactivate to the cheers of the crowd. Hearing the rioters' assembly and the mill's power turned on, the caretaker comes from an inside office and shoots Will for trespassing. The crowd carries his body back to his house. Griselda enters to tell Rosamund the bad news, but Rosamund cries out that she already knows what has happened. The populist Pluto Swint is elected sheriff, replacing the incumbent. The Walden family squabbles after Will's funeral, particularly over Griselda's actions at the mill and the numerous affections which she attracts from the other sons. The family decides to give up searching for the gold. The family contentedly plow for the first time in years, with Ty Ty finding the blade of an old shovel in the ground and speculates about whether the gold might lie in that spot. As he begins digging again, the final resting place of the marker for God's Little Acre is revealed to be none other than the pond.

Cast

Robert Ryan Robert Bushnell Ryan (November 11, 1909 – July 11, 1973) was an American actor and activist. Known for his portrayals of hardened cops and ruthless villains, Ryan performed for over three decades. He was nominated for the Academy Award for B ...

as Ty Ty Walden, a widower *

Aldo Ray Aldo Ray (born Aldo Da Re; September 25, 1926 – March 27, 1991) was an American actor of film and television. He began his career as a contract player for Columbia Studios before achieving stardom through his roles in ''The Marrying Kind ...

as Will Thompson *

Buddy Hackett Buddy Hackett (born Leonard Hacker; August 31, 1924 – June 30, 2003) was an American actor, comedian and singer. His best remembered roles include Marcellus Washburn in ''The Music Man'' (1962), Benjy Benjamin in ''It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Wo ...

as Pluto Swint * Jack Lord as Buck Walden *

Fay Spain Lona Fay Spain (October 6, 1932 – May 8, 1983) was an American actress in motion pictures and television. Early years Born in Phoenix, Arizona, Fay Spain was the younger of two daughters born to Robert C. Spain and Arminta Frances "Mick ...

as Darlin' Jill Walden, Ty Ty's daughter *

Vic Morrow Victor Morrow (born Victor Morozoff; February 14, 1929 – July 23, 1982) was an American actor. He came to prominence as one of the leads of the ABC drama series '' Combat!'' (1962–1967), which earned him an Emmy nomination for Outstand ...

as Shaw Walden *

Helen Westcott Helen Westcott (born Myrthas Helen Hickman, January 1, 1928 – March 17, 1998) was an American stage and screen actress and former child actress. She is best known for her work in ''The Gunfighter'' (1950). Early years Westcott was the daughte ...

as Rosamund, Will's wife *

Lance Fuller Lance Fuller (December 6, 1928 – December 22, 2001) was an American actor. Biography Born in Somerset, Kentucky, he worked as a contract actor for most of the 1950s with Universal-International. With many uncredited roles for the fir ...

as Jim Leslie * Rex Ingram as Uncle Felix *

Michael Landon Michael Landon (born Eugene Maurice Orowitz; October 31, 1936 – July 1, 1991) was an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his roles as Little Joe Cartwright in '' Bonanza'' (1959–1973), Charles Ingalls in '' Little House on the P ...

as Dave Dawson, the albino *

Russell Collins Russell Collins (born Russell Henry Collins, October 11, 1897 – November 14, 1965) was an American actor whose 43-year career included hundreds of performances on stage, in feature films, and on television. Early life Born in 1897 in Indiana ...

as watchman *

Davis Roberts Davis Roberts (born Robert A. Davis, March 7, 1917 – July 18, 1993) was an American character actor whose career spanned five decades, from the late 1940s until just before his death in 1993. He started out making films in the 1940s and 1 ...

as farm worker with hoe * Janet Brandt lso listed in credits as dialogue coachas angry woman *

Tina Louise Tina Louise ( Blacker; born February 11, 1934) is an American actress widely known for her role as movie star Ginger Grant in the CBS television situation comedy ''Gilligan's Island''. With the death of Dawn Wells in 2020, Louise became the last ...

as Griselda Walden, Buck's wife

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:God's Little Acre 1958 films 1958 drama films American drama films American black-and-white films 1950s English-language films Southern Gothic films Films based on American novels Films about farmers Films set in farms Films set in Georgia (U.S. state) Films directed by Anthony Mann Films scored by Elmer Bernstein United Artists films Articles containing video clips 1950s American films

Plot

Cast

References

Further reading

External links