Oscar Micheaux

Oscar Micheaux was a very talented independent film maker. He was very determined to get his work shown and did everything he could to make sure that would happen. He was responsible for writing, financing, producing, directing, and distributing all of his films. In order to finance his work he would sell his personal belongings and borrow money from friends who all loved his work. The film we watched from Oscar Micheaux was Murder in Harlem. This film was very controversial for its time because of the outcome it had. The story is based off a murder/rape that happens in the near by chemical plant. Brisbane the white male worker was the one who committed the crime and tried to frame others. During this time in history the truth was usually going to come from the white man. Not in this case though. With help from his love of booze and pretty girls Hawkins, the one getting paid to keep his mouth shut, told the truth of the murder to Claudia the sister of Arthur Vance who originally was being charged for the murder. I usually have not watched many black and white films or older films in general but this one kept me interested. Not only did it keep in wondering what the final verdict was going to be, but also if the love story between Henry Glory and Claudia Vance was going to bloom. The other films we watched before this were Birth of a Nation and Within are Gates. These films were both silent films which at first didn't interest me. After i took into consideration the direction of the film and camera placement they were both very well done. I also liked how the music would represent what was taking place in each scene.