Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Spencer Tracy | ... | ||
Sidney Poitier | ... | ||
Katharine Hepburn | ... | ||
Katharine Houghton | ... | ||
Cecil Kellaway | ... | ||
Beah Richards | ... | ||
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Roy Glenn | ... |
Mr. Prentice
(as Roy E. Glenn Sr.)
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Isabel Sanford | ... |
Tillie
(as Isabell Sanford)
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Virginia Christine | ... | |
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Alexandra Hay | ... | |
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Barbara Randolph | ... |
Dorothy
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D'Urville Martin | ... |
Frankie
|
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Tom Heaton | ... |
Peter
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Grace Gaynor | ... |
Judith
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Skip Martin | ... |
Delivery Boy
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After a period of vacation in Hawaii, Joanna "Joey" Drayton returns to her parents' home in San Francisco bringing her fiancé, the high-qualified Dr. John Prentice, to introduce him to her mother Christina Drayton that owns an art gallery and her father Matt Drayton that is the publisher editor of the newspaper The Guardian. Joey was raised with a liberal education and intends to get married with Dr. John Prentice that is a black widower and needs to fly on that night to Geneva to work with the World Health Organization. Joey invites John's parents Mr. Prentice and Mrs. Prentice to have dinner with her family and the couple flies from Los Angeles to San Francisco without knowing that Joey is white. Christina invites also the liberal Monsignor Ryan, who is friend of her family. Along the day and night, the families discuss the problems of their son and daughter. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
This film is of course dated in many portions but still remains a powerful motion picture over thirty years after its release. Superb acting and dialog is what overcomes the dated aspect. Hepburn and Tracy are Matt and Christina Drayton a wealthy and successful couple who have a daughter named Joey played by Katherine Houghton who comes home and tells them she has met the man of her dreams. The only problem in the story is that he is of a different race. Sidney Poitier is John Wade Prentice a successful individual who is the man of Joeys dreams and is of the different race. The Draytons are people who in theory hold no prejudice toward any one regardless of their race, color or creed but now have those same views put harshly to the test when it's their own daughter involved. Sort of like the NIMBY philosophy "YES YES build more prisons, build more nuclear power plants, build more missile silos but Not In My BackYard! " Sure I believe in interracial marriage as long as it's not my daughter".
John Wades parents essentially share the same views as the Draytons. However Johns parents particularly his father played by Roy E. Glenn Sr. seems more realistic when speaking to his child about the situation than does Matt Drayton. He tells his son the way it really is and most likely will be. "You'll even be illegal in some states" he reminds his son. The two couples eventually come to grips with the fact that no matter what they say they will not be able to prevent their two children from going through with their plans. Spencer Tracy throughout his film career delivered many powerful lines of dialog. The final moments of this film he delivers perhaps his greatest. Which also turned out to be his last. AFI ranked this film number ninety-nine on their list of top one hundred. Because of it's powerful story and social issue it deserved to be higher. Other films that deal with interracial marriage to see are 1956's GIANT and 1961's Bridge to the Sun.