Sylvia "Kuumba" Williams Movies
American actress Sylvia "Kuumba" Williams appeared in several films during the 1970s. She has also appeared on television and in off-Broadway productions. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide- 1992
Set in 19th-century Louisiana, the made-for-cable film The Grand Isle is about a wealthy woman (Kelly McGillis) who discovers that she no longer believes in her pampered life as a socialite when she falls in love with a Creole artist (Adrian Pasdar). After she falls in love, she tragically tries to break away from her husband and his society. The Grand Isle is adapted from Kate Chopin's novel, The Awakening. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kelly McGillis, Jon de Vries, (more)
Paul Newman stars as an essentially decent cop patrolling that decimated, drug-and-gang-ridden borough known on the city maps as the Bronx, but known to its denizens as "Fort Apache". While Newman tries to hold on to his basic humanity and to treat even the sorriest of the people on his beat with dignity, he can't do much to convince his superiors that blind brutality is not the answer to social blight. When he witnesses fellow-cop Danny Aiello cold-bloodedly murdering a crime suspect, Newman is advised to sweep the whole incident under the rug. He refuses to do so, and as a result becomes "persona non grata" to his former friends on the force. Ed Asner co-stars as the beleaguered captain who has given up trying to treat his job as anything but a necessary evil, while Rachel Ticotin is Newman's love interest. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Newman, Ed Asner, (more)
- 1979
Muhammad Ali made his TV-movie dramatic debut in this adaptation of Howard Fast's novel Freedom Road. Though some of the names are changed, the story concerns the true-life efforts of senators Charles Sumner and Thaddeus Stevens to bring political order and racial equality to the post-Civil War South. Ali is cast as Gideon Jackson, an ex-slave who is elected to the U.S. senate during the Reconstruction Era. Interestingly enough, the character upon whom Jackson is based was depicted as the villain of D.W. Griffith's 1915 Civil War epic Birth of a Nation. Just as Griffth offered his own biased slant on the facts, so too did Fast rewrite history to promote his own political ideology. As for Muhammad Ali, his performance is no threat to Olivier, but he acts with sincerity and a commendable lack of bravado. Made for TV, Freedom Road represented the final film effort of Czechoslovakian director Jan Kadar. It was first telecast in two parts on October 29 and 30, 1979, an event that warranted a cover story in TV Guide. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1978
- R
This intriguing odd-ball melodrama has supernatural overtones and was especially made for drive-in theaters. The strange tale is set in the notorious Storyville red-light district of New Orleans and begins in the early 1900s as it chronicles the life of a young prostitute and her co-workers. The tale is simultaneously paralleled in a modern-day story featuring the reincarnated forms of the same characters, all of whom are somehow connected with a voodoo curse. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Virginia Mayo, Lindsay Bloom, (more)
- 1978
Nice to see veteran hardcase character actor Charles Napier in a leading role, even if it's in something as eminently forgettable as Big Bob Johnson and His Fantastic Speed Circus. The eponymous Big Bob (Napier) is head man of a spit-and-vinegar auto racing team. Bob's aggregation makes a brief pit stop to save a deserving young man from being swindled by his devious uncle (William Daniels). The upshot of all this is a cross-country race between two souped-up Rolls Royce. Aimed squarely at the Smokey and the Bandit crowd, the made-for-TV Big Bob Johnson debuted June 27, 1978. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Napier
- 1976
- PG
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Love never dies in Brian De Palma's psychological thriller, though money certainly complicates matters. Rich New Orleans real estate developer Michael Courtland (Cliff Robertson) lost his beloved wife Elizabeth (Genevieve Bujold) and their daughter during a botched kidnap rescue, after he chose to let the police try to free them instead of paying the ransom. Sixteen years later, Michael returns to the Tuscan church where he and Elizabeth first met, and he sees Sandra Portinari (Bujold again), the mirror image of his dead wife. Despite the reservations of his long-time friend and business partner (John Lithgow), Michael woos Sandra and brings her back to New Orleans to marry her. Seeing Sandra as his second chance to prove his love, Michael thinks he can finally put the past behind him, but the past is about to catch up with him in ways he never dreamed. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cliff Robertson, Geneviève Bujold, (more)
- 1976
Having already overrun most of South America, a swarm of vicious African killer bees prepares to descend upon the United States. Almost as if rehearsed, the tiny menaces converge on New Orleans during Mardi Gras. With revellers dropping left and right, thanks to the fatal stings of the bees, it is up to the local constabulary, represented by Sheriff McKew (Ben Johnson), and a team of scientists, commandeered by Dr. Mueller (Horst Buchholz), to end the deadly plague for good and all. As usual, however, it is such "civilians" as Jeff DuRand (Michael Parks) and Jeannie Devereaux (Gretchen Corbett) who are best equipped to ward off the buzzing scourges. An Emmy-award winner for Best Sound Mixing, The Savage Bees debuted November 22, 1976, on NBC. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Martin Ritt's big-screen adaptation of William H. Armstrong's Newberry Award winning novel, Sounder stars Cicely Tyson, Paul Winfield, and Kevin Hooks as a black family struggling through life in depression-era Louisiana. The Morgan family is poor, but close. Young son David (Hooks) enjoys hunting with his father Nathan (Paul Winfield) and his trusted dog Sounder. Eventually, they fall on such rough times that Nathan steals a loaf of bread to feed his family, but he is arrested and sentenced to a work camp. Mother Rebecca (Tyson) realizes that David is now responsible for taking care of the family. He sets out to locate where his father is being held, and becomes involved in a school for black children where he learns facts that give him a new level of self-esteem. Sounder was nominated for a variety of Academy Awards, including Best Picture. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cicely Tyson, Paul Winfield, (more)
