Goodbye Uncle Tom

First off, I just wanna say the transfer of the film is great. Blue Entertainment did a masterful job bringing this movie to 4K.This film is unrelenting and horrific. It's depiction of my Nation's (and my race's) immortal sin of slavery is an onslaught that doesn't let up.Slave breeding, slave ships and slave auctions are shown for all their brutality.The catharsis that comes at the end of the movie left me screaming in approval.A particular moment of note is when the documentary crew interview and Slave with glasses who appears to have been educated. He sits in a pen with other soon-to-be auctioned slaves and brings up justifications and apologetics for the institution that's has robbed him and his people of freedom."Slaves are expensive and thus masters seek to take good care of them because scars and injuries reduce their resale value."Hearing that said in this movie from the 70s made my skin crawl. I've heard many Confederate apologists whip out these same talking points at protests concerning the tearing down of the racist monuments they erected to celebrate the men who fought to keep their race enslaved.This movie makes me want to spit in those people's faces.

This film was like a blast from the past. I had the opportunity to see Goodbye Uncle Tom over thirty years ago when it was in the theater. Me and several friend had to drive to St. Louis to see it, being as it had just been pulled from Chicago theaters for fear that Goodbye Uncle Tom would start a riot in the streets at that time. In spite of its graphic nature every person black or white needs to see Goodbye Uncle Tom, it tells the story that "Roots" was afraid to tell, which is just how ugly the institution of slavery really was. The limits to which another person will go to abuse his fellow man in the interest of greed and money. Goodbye Uncle Tom shows the limits to which human rights were deliberately violated in the building of this country. It is not a film for the faint at heart, but neither was the institution it attempts to expose! It is a part of history in all its ugliness that should never be forgotten, and should serve as a reminder of the price others paid so that Black people can today be free in this land called the United States of America. We have come a long way but we also have a long way to go before we sit down at the table of brotherhood as one!If you never see another film in your life you should not miss the opportunity to see and own Goodbye Uncle Tom.I can truthfully say such a film could not be made today and never will be made ever again!

Goodbye Uncle Tom (1971), a mockumentary that explores slavery in the USA during the 19th century, is nothing more than a testament to sick-white, western-European mentality. Being familiar with directors Jacopetti’s and Prosperi’s other works, namely their Mondo films, detestable and reprehensible content were expected--but Goodbye Uncle Tom far surpassed what's conceivable from a healthy human mind.First, one must realize that the directors’ claim that this film is a documentary is pure propaganda. Jacopetti and Prosperi are skilled at mixing some truth into their fabrications and deceiving audiences into believing their absurd, unreal sideshow attractions are natural and genuine. No doubt, Goodbye Uncle Tom is peppered with real-life characters and recounts events from historical documents. But, the main problem lies in how these so-called facts are presented--from biased, prejudiced, white western-Europeans' muddled, mad minds.It’s lamentable to consider how multiple hundreds of Haitian black people were manipulated into participating in this atrocious film. Not only were they depicted as animalistic, but their treatment as actresses/actors was appallingly inhumane. It’s also very apparent that this movie manifested from men’s chauvinistic thinking. The camera fixates on female breasts throughout the movie--even those of adolescents. Even young boys are presented as sexual objects in one sequence where their naked bodies (all parts visible) are being rubbed down in silver and gold paint, as it's explained that these boys will fetch high prices at the auction. However, the most disturbing scene shows a 13-year-old virgin girl successfully seducing one of the film makers (presumably Jacopetti or Prosperi), and as the film maker contemplates morality, he finally surrenders to lasciviousness.Regardless of what Jacopetti and Prosperi said, Goodbye Uncle Tom is not anti-racist. The treatment and depiction of black people throughout the film as actresses/actors is cruel and denigrating. Slavery can be shown as hideous without committing an equally heinous sin, i.e. exploiting impoverished minorities to make a movie for pecuniary purposes.Blue Underground’s 2016 release of Goodbye Uncle Tom on DVD is uncut (123 minutes), has excellent audio/video quality considering the age of the film, widescreen presentation, and a few bonus features.