The Learning Tree
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The Learning Tree
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This film has been preserved in the National Film Registry in 1989.
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The Learning Tree is a 1969 American drama film written and directed by Gordon Parks, a celebrated photographer. It depicts the life of Newt Winger, a teenager growing up in Cherokee Flats, Kansas, in the 1920s, and chronicles his journey into manhood that is marked by tragic events. The Learning Tree is based on Parks' semi-autobiographical novel of the same name, which was published in 1963.
Why It's a Learning Tree Indeed
- Back in its day, the film was already noteworthy for being the first feature film directed by an African-American to be financed by a Hollywood studio, but today, the film may be even more significant as it fits into the tradition of black filmmaking.
- Gordon Parks Sr. tells the film as a touching and dramatic coming-of-age story about a youth whose mostly sheltered upbringing leaves him unprepared the grim realities of racism, like in his autobiographical novel the film's based on. Parks is, in a way, following in the footsteps of filmmakers like Oscar Micheaux and Spencer Williams, men who experienced racism firsthand, and who could report on it with more verisimilitude than even a well-intentioned white director.
- The Learning Tree serves a demanding film with troubling messages, but it’s not an accusatory or a despairing one. Gordon Parks is proof that it’s possible to escape the restrictions imposed by society. He even did it while keeping his dignity and respect for others.
- The opening scene, which finds Newt Winger fighting for his life during a tornado, offers an oblique commentary on The Wizard of Oz. Unlike Frank L. Baum's poor but gentle Kansas, this film's Kansas is a world in which moonshiners abuse their children and sex is an open topic, where Kirky -- a white sheriff -- can shoot a black man in the back with without any punishment. Parks' matter-of-fact treatment of brutality is a response to Hollywood's earlier attempts to find a place for blacks in society. It lets the viewers know right of the bat that the gloves are off and the film's not afraid to offend sensibilities and won’t soften the imagery.
- The film also depicts the ambiguous racial attitudes of black and white people with an ironic complexity rarely found in earlier films about racism.
- The film's also not interested in starting a war, as it encourages black people to fight back, but in a way that helps them and doesn't destroy them. Newt, the film's protagonist is able to maintain his dignity despite the prejudice and injustice he encounters on a daily basis.
- Strong acting from most of the cast. Although, the film's low budget meant the crew couldn't recruit big name stars. Most of them were from television.
- Dana Elcar and Dub Taylor serve important supporting roles. The former does a very credible job as the racist sheriff Kirky, and the latter appeared as Spikey -- a sideshow carny who organizes a fight competition at a country fair.
- Despite the film being slow-paced and melodramatic at times, it's able to make up for it by keeping the narrative rich in incident and framing everything in the wonder and natural world.
- The film's cinematography by Burnett Guffey, is lush and evocative. Parks knows how to take advantage of devices like slow motion, filters and fades to black, just as his narrative sense (his knowledge of the story and what each moment means) informs the editing.
Bad Qualities
- The acting and dialogue can occasionally be poorly-executed.
Trivia
- As mentioned above, The Learning Tree is the first feature film directed by an African-American (in this case, Gordon Parks) to be financed by a Hollywood studio. (in this case, Warner Bros.-Seven Arts)
The Film
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