''The Quiet One'' is a 1948 American

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

directed by

Sidney Meyers Sidney Meyers (March 9, 1906 – December 4, 1969), also known by the pen name Robert Stebbins was an American film director and editor. Sidney Meyers is best known for two documentary films: '' The Quiet One'', which he wrote and directed, a ...

. The documentary chronicles the rehabilitation of a young, emotionally disturbed

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

boy; it contains a commentary written by

James Agee James Rufus Agee ( ; November 27, 1909 – May 16, 1955) was an American novelist, journalist, poet, screenwriter and film critic. In the 1940s, writing for ''Time Magazine'', he was one of the most influential film critics in the United States. ...

, and narrated by

Gary Merrill Gary Fred Merrill (August 2, 1915 – March 5, 1990) was an American film and television actor whose credits included more than 50 feature films, a half-dozen mostly short-lived TV series, and dozens of television guest appearances. He starr ...

.Crowther, Bosley (1949).
'The Quiet One,' Documentary of a Rejected Boy, Arrives at the Little Carnegie
" ''The New York Times'' February 14, 1949. Online version retrieved Jan. 12, 2008. In his 1949 review, Bosley Crowther characterized the film succinctly: The still photographer

Helen Levitt Helen Levitt (August 31, 1913 – March 29, 2009) was an American photographer and cinematographer. She was particularly noted for her street photography around New York City. David Levi Strauss described her as "the most celebrated and least ...

was one of the film's cinematographers and writers, along with the painter Janice Loeb, who also produced. The neoclassical composer

Ulysses Kay Ulysses Simpson Kay (January 7, 1917 in Tucson, Arizona, Tucson, Arizona – May 20, 1995 in Englewood, New Jersey, Englewood, New Jersey) was an American composer. His music is mostly neoclassicism, neoclassical in style. Life and career Kay, the ...

wrote the score for the film. The film's principal cinematographer, Richard Bagley, also photographed the critically acclaimed New York

semidocumentary A semidocumentary is a form of book, film, or television program presenting a fictional story that incorporates many factual details or actual events, or which is presented in a manner similar to a documentary. Characteristics Stylistically, it ...

feature ''

On the Bowery ''On the Bowery'' is a 1956 American docufiction film directed by Lionel Rogosin. The film, Rogosin's first feature was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature Film. After the Second World War, Lionel Rogosin made a vow to f ...

''. The film was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

at the 21st Academy Awards, losing to ''

The Secret Land ''The Secret Land'' is a feature-length 1948 documentary film about the United States Navy expedition code-named "Operation Highjump" to Antarctica in 1946. The film, which was shot entirely by USN and US Army military photographers, focuses on ...

'', and was then nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Awards, Academy Award for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best Story. Be ...

at the 22nd Academy Awards the next year, losing to '' Battleground''. Along with '' Street Angel'', it is one of two English-language films to receive Oscar nominations in separate years. The

National Board of Review The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered an early harbinger of the film awards season that culminat ...

named ''The Quiet One'' the second best film of 1949.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Quiet One, The 1948 films American documentary films Films directed by Sidney Meyers Documentary films about children with disability Documentary films about African Americans 1948 documentary films Black-and-white documentary films American black-and-white films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films