A searing 1850s Southern drama of survival, exploitation, and revolt on a brutal plantation.
SLAVES
The tamings...The desires...The furies...of the Old South!
A Kentucky slave fights for his freedom from cruel overseer whose mistress eventually joins the other slaves in their revolt.
Biberman’s last film is as direct and unsparing as its subject matter.
Herbert J. Biberman's Slaves doesn't sugarcoat antebellum cruelty, pitting Dionne Warwick and Ossie Davis against Stephen Boyd’s predatory MacKay. With a script drawing on Harriet Beecher Stowe, this is Southern Gothic by way of 1969—raw, angry, and unflinching.
— SassyFlix Programmer
Slaves is a 1969 American drama film directed by Herbert J. Biberman about Cassy and Luke, two black slaves in the 1850s South, who are sold to a sadistic plantation owner and forced to fight for their freedom.
Synopsis
- Director
- Herbert J. Biberman
- Writers
- Herbert J. Biberman, John O. Killens, Alida Sherman, Harriet Beecher Stowe
- Release
- 1969
- Runtime
- 1h 50m
- Genres
- Drama
Why Cult
Dionne Warwick and Ossie Davis lead an ensemble that includes Stephen Boyd as the menacing MacKay and Gale Sondergaard as the conflicted mistress.
The film centers on a revolt by enslaved people and their unlikely ally, the overseer’s mistress, adding a layer of rebellious tension.
Directed by Herbert J. Biberman, a blacklisted filmmaker, bringing a pointed perspective to this story of oppression and resistance.
Themes & Keywords
Questions from the Vault
What is Slaves about? +
Slaves is a drama set in the 1850s South, following two black slaves, Cassy and Luke, who are sold to a harsh plantation owner and must fight for their freedom.
Who directed Slaves? +
Slaves was directed by Herbert J. Biberman.
How long is Slaves? +
Slaves has a runtime of 110 minutes.
What genre is Slaves? +
Slaves is a drama.
When was Slaves released? +
Slaves was released in 1969.
