Genuine and sometimes beautiful emotions permeate this otherwise thin drama about a poorly black sharecropper and his family dealing with financial hardships in the Depression-scarred 1930s. Cicely Tyson gives a wonderfully gritty and natural performance playing the mother of three young ones in rural Louisiana who is left in charge of her ramshackle homestead after her husband is arrested for trespassing and robbery (stealing a ham) and sentenced to one year on a prison work farm. Adapted from the book by William H. Armstrong, this heartfelt piece is complimented by authentic locations and an appealing cast. If the midsection of the movie (focusing on the eldest son's education) seems to stray, one almost doesn't notice due to director Martin Ritt's rapt attention to character. Followed by a sequel in 1976. **1/2 from ****
Review of Sounder
