Nothing stops Lead Belly from singing his songs, not even the sad sad situation see faces in his travels through life. Huddie "Lead Belly" Ledbetter, as played by Roger E. Mosely, has to deal with lots of obstacles as he travels the country, from his time working in a brothel to jail time to relationships with various women, all along trying to maintain his dignity and integrity. Mosely creates a very complex character, and he is surrounded by a cast of popular black character actors including such familiar faces as Madge Sinclair, Lynn Hamilton and Paul Benjamin. Of course, along the way he has to deal with excessive racism, but eventually find success, putting his songs down on record and creating unforgettable legend.
With his songs both in the background and song as part of life entertainment, Leadbelly's story is a very interesting one, a sad account of times gone by, called mostly As anecdotes rather than a full linear story, but here it works. This is one of the few mostly all black movies that is more mainstream and not part of the blaxploitation genre of the 70's, beautiful and sad, often funny, and dealing with very well-developed characters as opposed to cliches. It's a shame that this film is not better known, and it's a great part for Mosely to sink his talented acting bones into. I was surprised by how many of these songs I had actually heard before not having known much about him.
With his songs both in the background and song as part of life entertainment, Leadbelly's story is a very interesting one, a sad account of times gone by, called mostly As anecdotes rather than a full linear story, but here it works. This is one of the few mostly all black movies that is more mainstream and not part of the blaxploitation genre of the 70's, beautiful and sad, often funny, and dealing with very well-developed characters as opposed to cliches. It's a shame that this film is not better known, and it's a great part for Mosely to sink his talented acting bones into. I was surprised by how many of these songs I had actually heard before not having known much about him.