One of the Hollywood Ten
Encyclopedia
One of the Hollywood Ten (2000
) is a Spanish
and British
bio-picture
. The film was written and directed by Karl Francis
.
The drama focuses on screenwriter
/director
Herbert Biberman
and his efforts to make, what would become the historic political film
, Salt of the Earth
(1954
), produced without studio backing after being blacklisted
for belonging to the American Communist Party
.
Academy Awards
, where Biberman's wife, Gale Sondergaard
(Greta Scacchi
), wins the first ever "Best Supporting Actress" Oscar. Although the anti-Fascist sentiment in her acceptance speech gets her labeled a "commie" by some observers, she and Biberman (Jeff Goldblum
) are placed under contract at Warner Bros.
He first comes under scrutiny more for his Jewish background than his political activities. Yet, with Cold War
paranoia growing, a group of Hollywood directors and actors — Biberman, Sondergaard, Danny Kaye
, and Dalton Trumbo
among them—are labeled Communists and questioned before Congress. After refusing to testify against his colleagues, he is imprisoned in the Federal Correctional Institution
at Texarkana for a period of six months. Once released, he discovers his Hollywood career is finished.
Sondergaard suggests her husband direct a screenplay about the real-life 1950-51 strike waged by Mexican-American miners
against the Empire Zinc Company
in Bayard, New Mexico
written by Michael Wilson
, also a victim of the blacklist, and Biberman's brother Michael. She feels the lead role of Esperanza Quintero, who rallied the wives of the unemployed miners and urged them to support their husbands, is an ideal way to jump-start her stagnating career. Biberman agrees, but after meeting with the people who participated in the strike and being inspired by their passion, he decides all roles should be played by ethnic actors.
Because the film has no studio backing and most Hollywood players fear being associated with Biberman and the project, he eventually casts local residents from Grant County, New Mexico
and members of the International Union of Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers, Local 890 to fill most of the roles. Juan Chacón, the Union Local president, is cast as the fiery Ramon Quintero opposite Mexican actress Rosaura Revueltas
as his wife Esperanza. Will Geer
is one of only five Hollywood actors to accept a role in the production.
The FBI investigates the film's financing, attempts to steal the film's negatives
, tells film-processing labs not to work on the film when they are unable to locate them, incites locals who are unhappy with the film crew's presence to set fire to many of the sets, and eventually deports Revueltas on bogus charges. Biberman stands his ground and completes the film, using scenes with Revueltas that were shot in her native Mexico and then smuggled into the US.
when the film was released in Europe
. He became determined to film "The Making of Salt of the Earth" and worked with fellow-Welshman Nigel Walters, the director of cinematography
, for years to make the film.
Jack Warner
, Humphrey Bogart
, Edward Dmytryk
, Howard Hughes
, Dalton Trumbo
, and George Jessel
are among the real-life personalities depicted in the film.
The film was produced and shot in Madrid
.
film critic, Stephen Holden
, generally liked the film, especially its message, but found some of the acting and the screenplay problematic. He wrote, "One of the Hollywood 10 has a strong performance by Mr. Goldblum and a refreshingly sulfurous view of 1950s Hollywood caving in to fear. As hard-hitting as the movie is, some of its performances are thuddingly overstated, and its screenplay wears its didacticism
on its sleeve. One of the Hollywood 10 may be a useful film, but it is far from a great one."
Leslie Camhi, writing for The Village Voice
, liked the work of director Karl Francis
and how he kept close to the true story, and wrote, "As Biberman, Jeff Goldblum mutes his considerable charisma; his stilted intellectual is so consumed by ideology that he hardly notices the harm done to his wife, actress Gale Sondergaard (played by firebrand Greta Scacchi), whose Oscar-winning career was cut short by his unflinching idealism. But director Francis shifts skillfully between scenes of glamour and oppression, sticking close to this compelling history."
Variety
magazine film critic David Rooney was critical of the film's direction and believed the film is only worthy of cable television. He wrote, "A fascinating chapter in Hollywood history gets unremarkable treatment in One of the Hollywood Ten, which centers on blacklisted director Herbert J. Biberman...[but] the pedestrian approach employed by writer-director Karl Francis gives it the look and feel of a lackluster cable movie, which would appear to be its commercial destination."
by The Walt Disney Company
, and debuted at the San Sebastián Film Festival on September 29, 2000.
It was featured at the Commonwealth Film Festival, Great Britain
; the New York Jewish Film Festival, NY, USA; the San Diego Jewish Film Festival, San Diego, USA; the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, San Francisco, USA; the Washington Jewish Film Festival, Washington DC, USA; and other film festivals.
However at this point in time (August 2010), it is not available from a US vendor, and it is almost impossible to purchase elsewhere. A curious state of affairs given the subject.
2000 in film
The year 2000 in film involved some significant events.The top grosser worldwide was Mission: Impossible II. Domestically in North America, Gladiator won the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Actor ....
) is a Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
bio-picture
Biographical film
A biographical film, or biopic , is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or people. They differ from films “based on a true story” or “historical films” in that they attempt to comprehensively tell a person’s life story or at least the most historically important years of their...
. The film was written and directed by Karl Francis
Karl Francis
Karl Francis is a Welsh film and television director, producer and screenwriter, associated with left-wing political causes. His work is inspired by the likes of Chris Marker and Ken Loach and has included output in both the English and Welsh languages.-Biography:Francis was born in Bedwas in...
.
The drama focuses on screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
/director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
Herbert Biberman
Herbert Biberman
Herbert J. Biberman , was an American screenwriter and film director. He may be best known for having been one of the Hollywood Ten as well as directing Salt of the Earth, a 1954 film about a zinc miners' strike in Grant County, New Mexico.He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Joseph and...
and his efforts to make, what would become the historic political film
Political cinema
Political cinema in the narrow sense of the term is a cinema which portrays current or historical events or social conditions in a partisan way in order to inform or to agitate the spectator...
, Salt of the Earth
Salt of the Earth
Salt of the Earth is an American drama film written by Michael Wilson, directed by Herbert J. Biberman, and produced by Paul Jarrico. All had been blacklisted by the Hollywood establishment due to their alleged involvement in communist politics....
(1954
1954 in film
The year 1954 in film involved some significant events and memorable ones.-Events:*May 12 - The Marx Brothers' Zeppo Marx divorces wife Marion Benda...
), produced without studio backing after being blacklisted
Hollywood blacklist
The Hollywood blacklist—as the broader entertainment industry blacklist is generally known—was the mid-twentieth-century list of screenwriters, actors, directors, musicians, and other U.S. entertainment professionals who were denied employment in the field because of their political beliefs or...
for belonging to the American Communist Party
Communist Party USA
The Communist Party USA is a Marxist political party in the United States, established in 1919. It has a long, complex history that is closely related to the histories of similar communist parties worldwide and the U.S. labor movement....
.
Plot
The film opens at the 19371937 in film
The year 1937 in film involved some significant events, including the Walt Disney production of the first full-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.- Events :*April 16 - Way Out West premieres in the US....
Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
, where Biberman's wife, Gale Sondergaard
Gale Sondergaard
Gale Sondergaard was an American actress.Sondergaard began her acting career in theatre, and progressed to films in 1936. She was the first recipient of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her film debut in Anthony Adverse...
(Greta Scacchi
Greta Scacchi
Greta Scacchi is an Italian-Australian actor.-Early life:Scacchi was born Greta Gracco in Milan, Italy, on 18 February 1960, the daughter of Luca Scacchi Gracco, an Italian art dealer and painter, and Pamela Carsaniga, an English dancer and antiques dealer...
), wins the first ever "Best Supporting Actress" Oscar. Although the anti-Fascist sentiment in her acceptance speech gets her labeled a "commie" by some observers, she and Biberman (Jeff Goldblum
Jeff Goldblum
Jeffrey Lynn "Jeff" Goldblum is an American actor. His career began in the mid-1970s and he has appeared in major box-office successes including The Fly, Jurassic Park and its sequel Jurassic Park: The Lost World, and Independence Day...
) are placed under contract at Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
He first comes under scrutiny more for his Jewish background than his political activities. Yet, with Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
paranoia growing, a group of Hollywood directors and actors — Biberman, Sondergaard, Danny Kaye
Danny Kaye
Danny Kaye was a celebrated American actor, singer, dancer, and comedian...
, and Dalton Trumbo
Dalton Trumbo
James Dalton Trumbo was an American screenwriter and novelist, and one of the Hollywood Ten, a group of film professionals who refused to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947 during the committee's investigation of Communist influences in the motion picture industry...
among them—are labeled Communists and questioned before Congress. After refusing to testify against his colleagues, he is imprisoned in the Federal Correctional Institution
Federal Correctional Institution, Texarkana
The Federal Correctional Institution, Texarkana is a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility in unincorporated Bowie County, Texas, near Texarkana, Texas. The prison, near the Texas-Arkansas border, is north of Shreveport, Louisiana and east of Dallas, Texas. It is a low-security facility used for the...
at Texarkana for a period of six months. Once released, he discovers his Hollywood career is finished.
Sondergaard suggests her husband direct a screenplay about the real-life 1950-51 strike waged by Mexican-American miners
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
against the Empire Zinc Company
Empire Zinc Company
The Empire Zinc Company was a subsidiary of the New Jersey Zinc Company. It originally held claims in the Gilman Mining district in Colorado. From 1912 to 1915, the New Jersey Zinc Company acquired and consolidated the mines as the Eagle Mines and operated Empire Zinc Company as a subsidiary. It...
in Bayard, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
written by Michael Wilson
Michael Wilson (writer)
Michael Wilson was an Academy Award winning American screenwriter who was blacklisted by the Hollywood movie studio bosses during the era of McCarthyism....
, also a victim of the blacklist, and Biberman's brother Michael. She feels the lead role of Esperanza Quintero, who rallied the wives of the unemployed miners and urged them to support their husbands, is an ideal way to jump-start her stagnating career. Biberman agrees, but after meeting with the people who participated in the strike and being inspired by their passion, he decides all roles should be played by ethnic actors.
Because the film has no studio backing and most Hollywood players fear being associated with Biberman and the project, he eventually casts local residents from Grant County, New Mexico
Grant County, New Mexico
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*84.9% White*0.9% Black*1.4% Native American*0.4% Asian*0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*2.8% Two or more races*9.8% Other races*48.3% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
and members of the International Union of Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers, Local 890 to fill most of the roles. Juan Chacón, the Union Local president, is cast as the fiery Ramon Quintero opposite Mexican actress Rosaura Revueltas
Rosaura Revueltas
Rosaura Revueltas Sánchez was a Mexican star of screen and stage, and a dancer, author and teacher.-Early life:...
as his wife Esperanza. Will Geer
Will Geer
Will Geer was an American actor and social activist. His original name was William Aughe Ghere. He is remembered for his portrayal of Grandpa Zebulon Tyler Walton in the 1970s TV series, The Waltons....
is one of only five Hollywood actors to accept a role in the production.
The FBI investigates the film's financing, attempts to steal the film's negatives
Negative (photography)
In photography, a negative may refer to three different things, although they are all related.-A negative:Film for 35 mm cameras comes in long narrow strips of chemical-coated plastic or cellulose acetate. As each image is captured by the camera onto the film strip, the film strip advances so that...
, tells film-processing labs not to work on the film when they are unable to locate them, incites locals who are unhappy with the film crew's presence to set fire to many of the sets, and eventually deports Revueltas on bogus charges. Biberman stands his ground and completes the film, using scenes with Revueltas that were shot in her native Mexico and then smuggled into the US.
Cast
- Jeff GoldblumJeff GoldblumJeffrey Lynn "Jeff" Goldblum is an American actor. His career began in the mid-1970s and he has appeared in major box-office successes including The Fly, Jurassic Park and its sequel Jurassic Park: The Lost World, and Independence Day...
as Herbert BibermanHerbert BibermanHerbert J. Biberman , was an American screenwriter and film director. He may be best known for having been one of the Hollywood Ten as well as directing Salt of the Earth, a 1954 film about a zinc miners' strike in Grant County, New Mexico.He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Joseph and... - Greta ScacchiGreta ScacchiGreta Scacchi is an Italian-Australian actor.-Early life:Scacchi was born Greta Gracco in Milan, Italy, on 18 February 1960, the daughter of Luca Scacchi Gracco, an Italian art dealer and painter, and Pamela Carsaniga, an English dancer and antiques dealer...
as Gale SondergaardGale SondergaardGale Sondergaard was an American actress.Sondergaard began her acting career in theatre, and progressed to films in 1936. She was the first recipient of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her film debut in Anthony Adverse... - Ángela MolinaÁngela MolinaÁngela Molina is a Spanish actress, and a daughter of Antonio Molina, Spanish singer and actor.Molina studied dance and theater art in the Escuela Superior de Madrid. She rose to international prominence after starring in Luis Buñuel's last movie That Obscure Object of Desire...
as Rosaura RevueltasRosaura RevueltasRosaura Revueltas Sánchez was a Mexican star of screen and stage, and a dancer, author and teacher.-Early life:... - Christopher Fulford as Riffkind
- Antonio Valero as Juan Chacón
- John SessionsJohn SessionsJohn Gibb Marshall , better known by the stage name John Sessions, is a Scottish actor and comedian. He is known for comedy improvisation in television shows such as Whose Line Is It Anyway?; as a panellist on QI; and as a character actor in numerous films, both in the UK and in Hollywood.-Early...
as Paul JarricoPaul JarricoPaul Jarrico was an American screenwriter and film producer who was blacklisted by the Hollywood movie studio bosses during the era of McCarthyism.-Early years:... - Geraint Wyn DaviesGeraint Wyn DaviesGeraint Wyn Davies is a British-Canadian-American actor.He was born on 20 April 1957 in Britain, at Swansea. He was the son of a Congregationalist preacher...
as Michael Wilson - Sean Chapman as Edward DmytrykEdward DmytrykEdward Dmytryk was an American film director who was amongst the Hollywood Ten, a group of blacklisted film industry professionals who served time in prison for being in contempt of Congress during the McCarthy-era 'red scare'.-Early life:Dmytryk was born in Grand Forks, British Columbia, Canada,...
- Peter BowlesPeter Bowles-Early life:Bowles was born in London, England, the son of Sarah Jane and Herbert Reginald Bowles. His father was a chauffeur and butler at a stately home in Warwickshire; but, upon the outbreak of World War II, he was seconded to work as an engineer at Rolls-Royce and moved the family to Nottingham...
as Jack WarnerJack WarnerJack Leonard "J. L." Warner , born Jacob Warner in London, Ontario, was a Canadian American film executive who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California... - Jorge de Juan as Floyd
- Teresa José Berganza as Henrietta Williams
- Jorge Bosch as Joe Morales
- Daisy White as Sonya
- Luke Harrison Mendez as Dan
- Trinidad Serrano as Joan
Background
Salt of the Earth caught the attention of Welsh writer-director Karl FrancisKarl Francis
Karl Francis is a Welsh film and television director, producer and screenwriter, associated with left-wing political causes. His work is inspired by the likes of Chris Marker and Ken Loach and has included output in both the English and Welsh languages.-Biography:Francis was born in Bedwas in...
when the film was released in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. He became determined to film "The Making of Salt of the Earth" and worked with fellow-Welshman Nigel Walters, the director of cinematography
Cinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
, for years to make the film.
Jack Warner
Jack Warner
Jack Leonard "J. L." Warner , born Jacob Warner in London, Ontario, was a Canadian American film executive who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California...
, Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
, Edward Dmytryk
Edward Dmytryk
Edward Dmytryk was an American film director who was amongst the Hollywood Ten, a group of blacklisted film industry professionals who served time in prison for being in contempt of Congress during the McCarthy-era 'red scare'.-Early life:Dmytryk was born in Grand Forks, British Columbia, Canada,...
, Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
, Dalton Trumbo
Dalton Trumbo
James Dalton Trumbo was an American screenwriter and novelist, and one of the Hollywood Ten, a group of film professionals who refused to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947 during the committee's investigation of Communist influences in the motion picture industry...
, and George Jessel
George Jessel (actor)
George Albert Jessel was an American illustrated song "model," actor, singer, songwriter, and Academy Award-winning movie producer. He was famous in his lifetime as a multitalented comedic entertainer, achieving a level of recognition that transcended his limited roles in movies...
are among the real-life personalities depicted in the film.
The film was produced and shot in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
.
Critical reception
The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
film critic, Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden is an American writer, music critic, film critic, and poet.Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963...
, generally liked the film, especially its message, but found some of the acting and the screenplay problematic. He wrote, "One of the Hollywood 10 has a strong performance by Mr. Goldblum and a refreshingly sulfurous view of 1950s Hollywood caving in to fear. As hard-hitting as the movie is, some of its performances are thuddingly overstated, and its screenplay wears its didacticism
Didacticism
Didacticism is an artistic philosophy that emphasizes instructional and informative qualities in literature and other types of art. The term has its origin in the Ancient Greek word διδακτικός , "related to education/teaching." Originally, signifying learning in a fascinating and intriguing...
on its sleeve. One of the Hollywood 10 may be a useful film, but it is far from a great one."
Leslie Camhi, writing for The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
, liked the work of director Karl Francis
Karl Francis
Karl Francis is a Welsh film and television director, producer and screenwriter, associated with left-wing political causes. His work is inspired by the likes of Chris Marker and Ken Loach and has included output in both the English and Welsh languages.-Biography:Francis was born in Bedwas in...
and how he kept close to the true story, and wrote, "As Biberman, Jeff Goldblum mutes his considerable charisma; his stilted intellectual is so consumed by ideology that he hardly notices the harm done to his wife, actress Gale Sondergaard (played by firebrand Greta Scacchi), whose Oscar-winning career was cut short by his unflinching idealism. But director Francis shifts skillfully between scenes of glamour and oppression, sticking close to this compelling history."
Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
magazine film critic David Rooney was critical of the film's direction and believed the film is only worthy of cable television. He wrote, "A fascinating chapter in Hollywood history gets unremarkable treatment in One of the Hollywood Ten, which centers on blacklisted director Herbert J. Biberman...[but] the pedestrian approach employed by writer-director Karl Francis gives it the look and feel of a lackluster cable movie, which would appear to be its commercial destination."
Distribution
The movie was released in SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
by The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
, and debuted at the San Sebastián Film Festival on September 29, 2000.
It was featured at the Commonwealth Film Festival, Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
; the New York Jewish Film Festival, NY, USA; the San Diego Jewish Film Festival, San Diego, USA; the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, San Francisco, USA; the Washington Jewish Film Festival, Washington DC, USA; and other film festivals.
However at this point in time (August 2010), it is not available from a US vendor, and it is almost impossible to purchase elsewhere. A curious state of affairs given the subject.