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2008 gets off to a
great start for Hammer fans, with the long awaited UK
dvd release of Song of Freedom as part of the Paul
Robeson Collection on 28 January 2008.
Song of
Freedom is one of the earliest ever Hammer Films.
Produced in 1935 it was actually only the third film
that the company made, after The Public Life of the
Henry the Ninth (1934) and Mystery of the Mary
Celeste (1935). The feature stars American singor
and actor Paul Robeson as a West African descendant who
uses his singing talents as a way to connect with his
people. Co-starring Elizabeth Welch, directed by J.Elder
Willis and produced by Will Hammer and Enrique Carreras.
Robeson
was given approval on the final cut, a rare move in
those days. Significantly, Song of Freedom is the
only time in Hammer's history when a black actor took
the lead.
Song of
Freedom has been released many times in the US on
inferior bootleg copies, the copyright ownership of the
film having been long debated. This is the first time
that the film will see its way to a legitimate dvd
release in the UK.
Network's
four-disc box set includes four other Robeson vehicles,
including Big Fella - which reunited much of the
same cast and crew as Song of Freedom. Collectors
will be pleased to learn that the fourth disc features a
20 track cd of classic Robeson tracks, including some of
those featured in Song of Freedom.
The set
retails at RRP £39.99 and is released on 28 January
2008.
You can
order your copy from our affiliates for a discounted
price of £28.89 including free p&p to the UK
here.
Further
information on the set, from the
Network site is below:
Actor,
athlete, singer and civil rights activist, Paul
Robeson was a true polymath Renaissance Man who
could sing and speak in more than twenty languages.
A huge role model for African Americans during the
twenties and thirties he is best known in cinematic
circles for the films he made in Britain in the
1930s which showcase his fine singing voice.
DISC ONE:
BODY AND SOUL: A dissolute, venal black preacher
shows up in a seedy speakeasy full of criminals and
cardsharps, then appears to be trying to dupe a
pious mother into marrying off her daughter.
SANDERS OF THE RIVER: Sanders has established peace
in the river district of West Africa where he is a
British Resident Commissioner. His probationary
chief, Bosambo, uses Sanders' orders to free a slave
convoy.
DISC TWO:
SONG OF FREEDOM: A successful British concert singer
discovers he is descended from a West African queen
whose tribe is now leaderless. He goes to Africa
where he is met with hostility - can he win their
hearts and minds?
BIG FELLA: A Marseille dock worker befriends a small
boy who has lost his parents after arriving on an
ocean liner. Can he reunite the young lad with his
parents?
DISC THREE:
KING SOLOMON’S MINES: Fortune hunter Patrick O'Brien
is on a trek across the desert in hope of finding
the fabled diamond mines of Solomon. His daughter
persuades hunter Allan Quartermain to lead a party
to rescue him.
DISC FOUR:
Exclusive audio CD featuring 20 of Paul Robeson's
greatest hits, including Ol' Man River, The Lonesome
Road and Lazy Bones.
Catalogue Number: 7952762
Classification: U
Picture: 1.33:1 / Black and White
Subtitles: None
Time: 400 mins approx
Barcode: 5027626276249
Number of Discs: 4
Sound: Mono / English / Silent
Region: 2 / PAL
Order your
copy from
amazon.co.uk here.
Order your
copy from
sendit.com here.
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