Lack of good storyline.

It is a performances centric movie

Don't Believe the Hype

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

I saw the film on TV today and found it fascinating and shocking.I agree with the opinion of the majority of the other reviewers that the cast was excellent. *** This review may contain spoilers ***I am confused that Author: Robert J. Maxwell (rmax304823@yahoo.com) from Deming, New Mexico, USA wrote:"Liebowitz, without his knowing, may have helped lose the case himself. In a café, seeing a black girl waiting for a lunch to be handed to her to take out because she's not admitted into the café. Liebowitz strides over to her, hands her the paper bag, slams down the payment on the counter, and shouts, "What kind of people ARE you?" That's no way to endear yourself to the community from which the jurors are drawn."This is not how the scene was in the version I saw. In the version I saw, Liebowitz sees the girl waiting outside the door and the waitress takes a very, very long time to bother to deliver the paper bag to her outside the door and collect her payment. This illustrates how little regard the waitress has for a black child.

I loved this movie, the acting, the story, the injustice. In fact I was so moved that I decided to learn more about the true case. Then something strange happened, upon reading the actual court testimony and uncovering the actual facts, these guys looked awful guilty to me.The movie would have you believe that trial after trial ended with conviction solely because of white prejudice. While it is true that there was a lynch mob, and far more prejudice in the south back then than now, the facts of the case totally justify why jury after jury found these men guilty. The only valid point made by the defense was that the jury was all white (which is why this case got national attention). The movie fails to mention that the national attention came at the funding of the Communist party who exploited the all white jury to make it seem like the defendants were getting an unfair trial. The movie also didn't mention that Ruby Bates was very well taken care of by the Communist party to recant her testimony.If you don't believe me, read the trial transcripts for yourself. You will see that these girls gave amazing details when describing how they were raped and who raped them. The most damning forensic evidence was that the girl's vaginas were loaded with sperm (far more than from one man). While the sperm was found to be non-motile (as in the movie) the movie insinuated that sperm can remain motile for up to 24 hours; when in reality vaginal sperm will remain motile for two to three hours (six hours in some very rare cases).It also didn't make sense that Victoria Price would stick to her story until her dying day when it was obvious that Ruby didn't change her story until paid off and instructed to do so by the Communist party. In fact shortly after the trial Ruby remained in a life of luxury, supported by the Communist party. The movie would also have you believe that Ruby Bates fought for the release of these boys for the rest of her life due to sheer guilt. However, the facts bear out that Ruby Bates did so as an active member of the International Labor Defense campaign and used the trials publicity to help promote Communist rhetoric.The movie was great, but a more accurate portrayal of the truth (rather than a politically correct con game) would have been more appreciated.

Movies such as HEAVENS FALL are poignant reminders of the cruel history of this country that still makes us bow our heads in shame. The story by writer/director Terry Green is a sensitive recreation of the re-trial of an African American man (one of nine) condemned to death in Scottsboro, Alabama in 1931 for the supposed gang rape of two white women, a trial with an all-white seated jury who took only 20 minutes to deliberate and convict the young men. It is a study of racism in the South in the 1930s and while the viewer would hope that the ending is triumphant, the story quietly fades with a particle decency represented by a New York trial lawyer and a sympathetic judge who opened the door to the beginnings of seated African American jurists. It is powerful in content: it is magnificent movie making.Samuel Leibowitz (Timothy Hutton) travels to Alabama form his offices in New York in 1933, to represent the nine condemned men after a Supreme Court ruling opened the door for a retrial. Leibowitz meets the prosecuting attorney Thomas Knight, Jr. (Bill Sage), more devoted to his potential career advancement than to his role as prosecutor, and the judge assigned to the case - James Horton (David Strathairn). Leibowitz interviews the nine condemned men and Haywood Patterson (B.J. Britt) is the first to be re-tried. Careful investigation uncovers the shaky case that convicted the men and Leibowitz, with the aid of the attorneys who pleaded the case before the Supreme Court, attempt to gain a racially mixed jury without success. Sent to cover the trial is a young reporter from Chicago (Anthony Mackie) who witnesses the racial hatred in the South first hand. His presence adds credibility to the proceedings. During the trial Leibowitz calls as witnesses the two women who made the false accusations - Victoria Price (LeeLee Sobieski) and Ruby Bates (Azura Skye) - and despite evidence clearing the nine men the trial ends in defeat. But that is only the beginning of a story that persists to this day. This is a true story about how racial hate tore the South apart in the 1930s, but it is also the story of how a few honest people tried to alter history.The cast is uniformly excellent, with Strathairn, Hutton, Skye, and Sage giving potent performances. The climate of the times is well captured by the cinematography of Paul Sanchez, the costumes by Lisa Davis, the fine editing by Suzy Elmiger, and the simple but effective musical score by Tony Llorens. This is a film everyone should see, not only because of the need to re-examine this part of our history, but also because it is such a fine example of American cinema. Grady Harp

this film is awesome, the story is breathtaking, the actors wonderful. I saw it at the Midwest Screening and the theater was completely spellbound. It has the heart and soul of "To Kill a Mockingbird". The scenery is so beautiful and interesting. The storyline is inspiring. No wonder Timothy Hutton chose to take this role, his character is smart, courageous and in this current political climate he is a hero for us. The rest of the cast wonderful, realistic and also multidimensional. The historical representation is authentic and yet very creative. You leave the movie inspired. What more can you ask for? Thank you for making such a thoughtful and entertaining film!! I know it will go far.