Sins of the Father (2002 film)

Sins of the Father is a 2002 American made-for-TV docudrama directed by Robert Dornhelm. The teleplay by John Pielmeier is based on a Texas Monthly article by Pamela Colloff chronicling the 1963 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama in which four young African American girls were killed while attending Sunday-school. The victims were Addie Mae Collins, 14 yrs old; Denise McNair, 11 yrs old; Carole Robertson, 14 yrs old; and Cynthia Welsley, 14 yrs old. It was believed that there were 5 girls together in the church basement on that fateful day, but only one survived: young Sarah Collins, Addie Mae's younger sister. The bombing was racially motivated and carried out by members of the Ku Klux Klan. The film was first aired on January 6, 2002 at FX.

Sins of the Father
Film Poster
Directed byRobert Dornhelm
Produced byFrank Siracusa
Written byPamela Colloff (Magazine Article at Texas Monthly)
John Pielmeier (Written by)
Starring
Music byHarald Kloser
Thomas Wanker
CinematographyDerick V. Underschultz
Edited byVictor Du Bois
Production
company
Artisan Entertainment
Landscape Entertainment
Distributed byFX
Artisan Entertainment
Release date
  • January 6, 2002 (2002-01-06)
Running time
93 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

Tom Cherry (Tom Sizemore), a middle-aged man, has difficult decisions to make when the police reopens the investigation about events involving the 1963 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama in which his father, Bobby Frank Cherry (Richard Jenkins), was involved. Now, Tom has to decide whether he protects his father or turn him and let the justice finally be made.

Cast
  • Tom Sizemore as Tom Cherry
  • Richard Jenkins as Bobby Frank Cherry
  • Brenda Bazinet as Virginia Cherry
  • Lachlan Murdoch as Young Tom
  • Colm Feore as Dalton Strong
  • Ving Rhames as Garrick Jones
  • Jessica Gray Charles as Denise McNair was murdered in Birmingham Bombing.
  • Funmiola Lawson as Cynthia Wesley was murdered in Birmingham Bombing.
  • Aaryn Doyle as Carole Robertson was murdered in Birmingham Bombing.
  • Isys McKoy as Addie Mae Collins was murdered in Birmingham Bombing.
  • Mica Le John as Sarah Collins was injured in Birmingham Bombing.
  • Kim Roberts as Mrs. Wesley
  • Delores Etienne as Older Woman at Church
  • Sandi Ross as Sunday School Teacher
  • Ardon Bess as Minister at Church
  • Michael Rhoades as Tommy
  • Bruce McFee as Robert Chambliss
  • Tony Munch as Herman Cash
  • Simon Reynolds as Troy Ingram
  • Tom McBeath as J. Edgar Hoover

Production

The film was shot in Toronto. The cast includes Tom Sizemore, Richard Jenkins, Ving Rhames, Colm Feore, Jackie Richardson, Connor Price, Aaryn Doyle, Isys McKoy, Jessica Gray Charles, and Funmiola Lawson.

Reception

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 50% based on reviews from 6 critics.[1]

Andy Webb from "The Movie Scene" gave the film four out five stars and wrote: "What this all boils down to is that "Sins of the Father" is an extremely powerful movie which doesn't hold back when it comes to showing the racism of the 1960s and then building a modern drama around it with a son's conflict. It will be too brutal for some but it is worth it as it will shock and move you whilst also showing a trio of actors playing difficult roles extremely well."[2]

Accolades

Rhames was nominated for the Black Reel Award for Best Actor[3] and the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special. Pielmeier's teleplay earned him nominations for the Humanitas Prize and the Writers Guild of America Award.[4] Sins of the Father was also nominated for an Artios Awards in the category of "Best Casting for TV Movie of the Week". The film was also nominated for a NAACP Image Awards for "Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special".[5]

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See also

References
  1. "Sins of The Father (2002)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
  2. Webb, Andy. "Sins of the Father (2002)". The Movie Scene. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  3. "Black Reel Awards". IMDB. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  4. "Writers Guild of America". IMDB. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  5. "Sins of the Father (2002 TV Movie) Awards". IMDB. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
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