Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years (1999) (TV)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Lynne Littman

Writers (WGA):

Sarah L. Delany (book) and
A. Elizabeth Delany (book) ...

Release Date:

18 April 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Tells the story of Sadie and Bessie Delany, two African-American (they preferred "colored") sisters who both lived past the age of 100...

Plot Keywords:

Train Station | North Carolina | Child Molestation | Slavery | Segregation

Awards:

2 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Diahann Carroll	...	Sadie Delany
Ruby Dee	...	Annie Elizabeth 'Bessie' Delany
Amy Madigan	...	Amy Hill Hearth
Lisa Arrindell Anderson	...	Sadie in her 20s
Audra McDonald	...	Bessie in her 20s
Mykelti Williamson	...	Papa Delany
Lonette McKee	...	Mama Delany
Richard Roundtree	...	Booker T. Washington
Della Reese	...	Martha Logan
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Cameron Arnett	...	Lemuel
Nate Bynum
Brandon Crawford	...	Bag Boy
Annie Joe Edwards	...	New tenant
Carter Gaston	...	Manross Delaney
Micki Grant	...	Actress playing Sadie on Broadway
Kiara Harris	...	Sadie, age 7
April Jones	...	Harriet
Rebecca Koon	...	Miss Moseley
Patty Mack	...	Mildred
Lizan Mitchell	...	Actress playing Bessie on Broadway
Terry Nienhuis	...	Mr. Milliam
Haleigh Porter	...	Bessie, age 5
Clifton Powell
Alison Robertson	...	Teacher
Bumper Robinson	...	Frank
Christopher Simmons
Bobby Tyson	...	Hap

Also Known As:

Having Our Say (USA) (short title)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Filming Locations:

Charlotte, North Carolina, USA

Company:

C&J Productions

Not quite as inspirational and clear as the book, but just as powerful!

A powerful adaptation of the best-selling book and the smash Broadway play about the lives of Bessie and Sadie Delany, two "colored" sisters who lived past the age of 100. Wonderfully played in their old age by Ruby Dee and Diahann Carroll, respectively, they tell their story in flashbacks to Amy Hill Hearth (played by Amy Madigan), a white New York Times reporter. The flashback and present-day scenes don't have as much inspirational value in them as in the book, but really are powerful. However, certain aspects of the sisters' lives, such as the inter-racial background of their mother and the reasons behind their father's stern personality are not presented clearly. You need to read the book to fully understand these things. Which is just as well, because the book's just as great! Aside from those flaws, it's wonderfully done and performed, especially by Dee and Carroll, and a very powerful and educational movie.