Cinema Studies – Documentary

The Color Purple spans the years 1909 to 1949, relating the life of 14 year old Celie (Whoopi Goldberg), a Southern black girl virtually sold into a life of servitude to her brutal husband, Albert (Danny Glover). Celie pours out her innermost thoughts in letters to her sister Nettie (Akousa Busia), but Albert hides the letters Nettie writes back, allowing Celie to think Nettie is dead. Celie finds a champion in the “don’t-take-no-guff” Sofia (Oprah Winfrey), the wife of Albert’s son from a previous marriage. Sofia however is “humbled” when she is beaten into submission by angry whites. Later, Celie is able to forge a strong friendship with Albert’s mistress Shug (Margaret Avery). Emboldened by this, Celie begins rifling through her husband’s belongings and finds Nettie’s letters. Able at last to stand up to her husband, Celie leaves him to search for a new life on her own.  This movie, Directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Menno Mayjes and Alice Walker contains the 1985 version and was nominated for 11 Oscars and had 14 wins and 25 nominations in total