Cry, The Beloved Country

1951

Directed By

Zoltan Korda

Synopsis

Cry, The Beloved Country features the phenomenal actor Canada Lee (Lifeboat) in his last onscreen role, and in one of his earliest films, acting royalty Sidney Poitier (Lilies of the Field), alongside British acting stalwarts Charles Carson (Secret Agent) and Joyce Carey (Brief Encounter). 

The outstanding Canada Lee plays Kumalo, a hard up Zulu priest who journeys from a small village in rural South Africa to Johannesburg in search of his missing son. Upon arrival in the big city, he is shocked to find first that his sister is a prostitute and then that his son has been arrested and sentenced to death for the shooting of an important white man.  

Back in the village, Jarvis, a rich white farmer (Charles Carson), indifferent to the injustices imposed by the apartheid, hears of the murder of his son. Through this tragedy, Jarvis learns that his son was a great activist opposed to the oppression of Black South Africans and thus comes to have a new understanding of their struggles. 

Adapted for the screen by literary icon and author of the original novel Alan Paton, this incredibly powerful and moving feature is about the heartbreak and friendship echoed between two very different men during a time of extreme racial tension under apartheid in South Africa. 

Cast
Canada Lee, Charles Carson, Sidney Poitier, Joyce Carey, Geoffrey Keen, Michael Goodliffe, Edric Connor, Charles McRae, Lionel Ngakane, Vivien Clinton, Reginald Ngeabo
Other Credits

Based on the novel by Alan Paton

Cinematography by Robert Krasker

Release Date
9 October 2023
extras
  • New Canada Lee: An interview with biographer Mona Z Smith
  • An interview with Lionel Ngakane (1990)
  • In Darkest Hollywood documentary
  • African Mirror footage of The World Premiere
  • Africa: Alan Paton (1962)
  • Behind the Scenes Stills gallery
Restoration Details

For the 2023 restoration of Cry, The Beloved Country, STUDIOCANAL went back to the original camera negative which was scanned and restored in 4K to produce a brand new HD master

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