5/5 Bravo!!!!
  by Hilltop (Arlington, Va USA)
I will tell you this. Sidney Poitier's performance stands on it's own. He created the part for other's to build on, and build on Danny Glover did when he grabbed that hat and dropped to his knees. His sister (I don't have her name)was the perfect opposite to him especially when she called him a rat (lol). Glover is remarkable understated, and are all the players and the movie itself.

4/5 Danny Glover is very believable
  by R. Bagula (Lakeside, Ca United States)
As I was growing up this play was the classic play everybody read.
I think the older version wasn't as well done as this one.
"Never be afraid to sit a while and think."
The Nigerian student here is presented as the voice of reason.
There is always hope in our future that tomorrow will be better than today.
Sometimes it seems that in historical processes, it is the striving of the minority that makes the whole greater than the parts.


3/5 Not Bad
  by C. LaCour (Texas)
I will have to disagree with some of the earlier reviewers. I think there is a tendency to prefer more updated versions just because they're newer. Danny Glover's portrayal of Walter Lee is far too exaggerated. In his interpretation, the quiet rage of Walter Lee Younger is inflated to almost maniacal behavior which is distracting and over the top. Esther Rolle (Lena) and Starletta Dupois (Ruth) are both pretty good, but Kim Yancey sometimes overplays Beneatha. Although I know it's inevitable to do so, I think it's unfair to compare this version to the 1960 film, since we all know that production regulations of the time period dictated the accommodations that were made. Besides, the 1960 version is a feature film, and this version is really more of a filmed stage production, which makes them different animals entirely. When time allows, I show both versions to my classes. Some actually prefer the 1960 version, while others like this one better. Ultimately, I think each has merits of its own and should be judged individually.

4/5 Please See The Original Film Version First
  by Leo Jay (Jersey City, USA)
This version is decent, but it pales in comparison to the original film version. Ester Rolle as Lena Younger doesn't have quite the command and authority of Claudia McNeil, but her performance is solid and convincing. Danny Glover's Walter is serviceable, but trying to match the electricity of Sidney Poiter's interpretation is an uphill battle. Starletta DuPois' portrayal of Ruth fails to convey the physical and emotional fatigue that Ruby Dee exuded with seeming effortlessness. Kim Yancey's performance as Beneatha is solid, but seems to borrow too liberally from Diana Sands' work in the earlier film. A nice treat is John Fiedler, reprising his role from the earlier film. Worth seeing, but... see the original, classic version first.

5/5 THE LADDER OF THE TWO VERSIONS..
  by Theatre Buff (PHILLY, USA)
This is absolutely the best version of this play ever.....Not to take anything away from the Sidney P. version, but it had too many cuts and added scenes and lost alot of what Lorraine Hansberry was really saying...Danny Glover's Walter Lee is stellar and far more compelling that Sidney's...Its just and all around master piece