In the Deep South of the 1920s, Rosewood was an exception to the rule. The mostly Black population owned most of the land and businesses. They enjoyed more prosperity than their white neighbors in the shanty town of Sumner. They kept to themselves, fully aware their town was a rare flower in a jungle of racism. Yet in the first week of 1923, a mob of whites massacred Rosewood's inhabitants and burned the town to the ground.

Probably every review of ROSEWOOD you'll come across will begin like this, with a cool recounting of the circumstances of this true story. It can't be helped. The horror of the events boggles the mind. And the way the film relates them rivets the soul.

The trouble starts when a white housewife in Sumner is beaten by her white paramour. Rather than face her husband with the truth, she cries in the street that a strange Black man did it. Her lie mutates and word spreads that she was beaten *and* raped. An armed mob soon congeals, looking for a suspect and looking toward their Black neighbors in Rosewood. If I wanted to be reductionist, I'd call this THE CRUCIBLE meets SCHINDLER'S LIST in the Deep South.

The movie sports few big names of which Jon Voight is the biggest. He plays the shopkeeper, Mr. Wright -- the richest white man (actually, the only white man) in Rosewood. Ving Rhames plays Mr. Mann, a drifter who stumbles upon the town and becomes tangled in its fate. Most people remember Rhames as the gangster boss in PULP FICTION. But you might have caught him in MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE where we appeared opposite Tom Cruise and... Jon Voight.

Don Cheadle is just great as Sylvester Carrier, the prideful piano teacher willing to stand up to racism. I first saw Cheadle as Denzel Washington's trigger-happy sidekick, Mouse, in DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS. Ester Rolles plays Sarah Carrier, Sylvester's Momma. You might not recognize her name, but you'd know her face. Rolles played Momma on "Good Times" and just about all her roles ever since. And though the character may be familiar, the performance works.

Then there's Michael Rooker who plays Sheriff Walker. His character provides a focal point of injustice, both leading the mob and being dragged by it. I saw Rooker this summer as the highwayman in THE TRIGGER EFFECT. He's probably best remembered as Henry in HENRY, PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER.

I doubt anyone could have made this movie quite like director John Singleton. If you've seen his pictures (BOYZ IN THE HOOD, POETIC JUSTICE, HIGHER LEARNING) you know Singleton has no problem reaching for the big hammer. But instead of hitting us over the head with his message in ROSEWOOD, he hits us in the heart. He never pushes technique over the drama of the story. Yet he creates some wonderful moments of pure cinema in which the images convey volumes of meaning without a single word.

Given the heavy subject matter, I expected ROSEWOOD to be a powerful movie -- and no fun whatsoever. Surprisingly, though, it has some great action and suspense. The cathartic bursts of the action scenes give a chance to cheer for *something* going right, while they advance the plot and raise the intensity. I wouldn't go see the film purely for the action. But I'm glad it was there.

Despite my amazement with the movie overall, ROSEWOOD did miss the mark on a couple points. The ending lasts too long and it pulls some of movie's punch. And while most of the characters came across as unique individuals, some of the key figures (the enigmatic drifter, the pompous shopkeeper, the Negro matron) seemed rather stock. That damaged my perception of the performances near the beginning. But as the movie progresses, the stock characters flesh out, and the acting tightens.

One odd complaint: I thought some of the sets looked theatrical. There were shots of porches and churches that seemed lifted from a stage production or a 1930s musical. It's not a big deal at all, but it struck me as strange given Singleton's obvious mastery in other scenes.

ROSEWOOD gave me the same feeling I get from documentaries on the Nazis. How could these people believe they were doing anything but evil? The hypocrisy cuts like a knife. Even as the town is burning and mutilated bodies are hanging from every tree, the sheriff continues to trek about with the mob, insisting they only want to "ask a few questions" of Rosewood's citizens. He witnesses murder after murder without arresting a single soul. His superiors berate him for not being able to keep the coloreds in line. Meanwhile, the ever-growing white mob acts like mass murder is no different from baseball, to be enjoyed by children and grown-ups alike. I could rant and ramble all night about this story and what it says about race relations and human nature. I'd be giving too much away if I did, but my desire to do so proves the film is serving its purpose.

ROSEWOOD made me roil with anger, throb with fear, weep with frustration and cheer for joy. It's been 74 years since the fires died out, but ROSEWOOD is certain to burn long in my mind.

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