Hallelujah

3/4/2025

I think that to get anything at all from this, you need to try to approach it with 1929 eyes and not 2029 ones, and even then this film may no longer have any part to play as it is doesn’t so much reinforce stereotypes but quite possibly originate some. Briefly, the story sees the hoodwinked “Zeke” (Daniel L. Hayes) fall foul of of some crooked dice and lose his family’s meagre $100 cotton crop revenue. Without that they will be destitute and so a fight ensues during which his brother “Spunk” (Everett McGarrity) is slain. Distraught, “Zeke” flees the scene and seeks a solace in God that sees him swiftly return to his township reborn as pastor “Zekiel”. He’s an enthusiastic preacher whose upbeat and celebratory sermons appeal to the poverty and hope-stricken local population, and even to “C