Judge Priest (1934) User Reviews

Enjoyable classic film upon a good judge against the injustices in a small town

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 24 February 2006]

In spite of the bonfires war had finished however the ashes and sequels still remain.The war between the states-the Union and Confederacy-was over but its tragedies and comedies haunted every grown man's mind.Taken from the Irvin S. Cobb stories which after main title picture says the following :¨The events were swapped took deep root in my memory and are familiar ghost of my boyhood.There was one man ¨Down Yonder¨I came specially to admire for he seemed typical of the tolerance of that day and the wisdom of that almost vanished generation.I called Judge Priest and I tried to draw reasonably fair likeness of him and his neighbors and the town in which he lived¨.

The film deals a southern Judge(Will Rogers) with good humor ,common sense,jingoist and with a heart of gold who makes many goods deeds,helping to unfortunates and hapless and doing as matchmaker of his nephew(T.Brown) with a beautiful young(Anita Louise).The film is well set during the reconstruction although is eventually hampered by racist stereotypes on the black people characterizations.Biggest film are the musical duet among Will Rogers and Hattie McDaniel and the jokes about the spitting on the pot during trial court celebration. Besides appears Hattie McDaniel in her second greatest role of her career,the first was, of course,Mammy in ¨Gone with the wind¨,she is in a number of ways,superior to most of the white folk surrounding her.She was the first African-American to win an Academy Award.She became the first African-American to attend the Academy Award as a guest,not a servant. Musical direction is by Cryl Mockridge who along with Dudley Nichols are habituals in John Ford movies.A worst remake was realized by Ford's own in 1953¨The sun shines bright¨ with Charles Winninger with little success. Motion picture will like to cinema classics moviegoers

Early, inexpensive, relaxed Ford/Will Rogers

[rmax304823 · 6/10 · 29 November 2006]

If you want to see what the Hollywood world was like before everyone became politically correct, this one is worth seeing. Hear Hattie MacDaniel sing about "the darkies". Watch Stepin Fetchit as he explains that he's not wearing his shoes because he's saving them for when his feet wear out. Watch the small Kentucky town's darkies get together and play a rousing version of "Dixie" outside the courtroom in order to help free a heroic ex-Confederate soldier and murderer who is on trial inside the building. Listen to Will Rogers as he tells Fetchit that if he, Fetchit, plays "Marching Through Georgia" on his harmonica he, Rogers, will join the lynching party. How extremely amusing.

Stepin Fetchit (Lincoln Perry) and Sleep 'n' Eat (Willie Best) played lazy, superstitious, gluttonous characters through the 1930s and 1940s. Whence such stereotypes? Adam Smith considered free labor more efficient than slave labor because a free worker was driven by a chance to better himself. A slave, wrote Smith, "can have no other interest but to eat as much, and to labour as little as possible." That's known as sleeping and eating.

Yet, the whole thing is pretty good natured. Sure, the blacks are all happy and supportive in this Reconstruction piece. But it isn't clear that they're treated less condignly that most of the white folks. Or that the stereotypes are any worse than the ever-popular and award-winning "Gone With the Wind." Everything is so relaxed, so shambling, so easy going, like Will Rogers' character, that the offense we inevitably take has to be bracketed. This was the mid-1930s and audiences of all colors laughed.

The story itself is a relatively simple tale of a basically good man put on trial and saved by a surprise witness for the defense. Mostly Ford is interested in character and community relations. There's a ritual taffy-pulling in which every towns person participates. There's a lot of whiskey floating around. There's John Ford's tobacco-chewing brother, Frank, hitting a spittoon hidden around a corner. At the end, Frank is able to spit a great distance in a trajectory like a rainbow in order to land inside the bloviating Berton Churchill's top hat. There's Rogers talking to the portrait of his deceased wife and children, bringing them up to date.

Ford sometimes claimed that this was his favorite picture, but he lied so often that it's hard to tell. His current "favorite" was always one that hadn't done well with the critics.

It's not a major effort by any measure, nor an important one, but quietly amusing in its own quietly amusing way.

Unpleasant Confederate frame around wonderful portrait of humane judge

[netwallah · 7/10 · 14 November 2006]

There is so much to like about this movie that it almost overcomes the so much to dislike. Almost, but not quite. The good part starts with Will Rogers playing the part of a decent, unpretentious small-town Kentucky judge. His warmth and low-key charm translates on screen to the equivalent of a kind of simple, populist wisdom. Some of the characters in the movie serve as a foil to Billy Priest's decency: the hysterically snobbish sister-in-law, the blimpishly pompous Senator Horace Maydew (Berton Churchill), and the creepily vulgar barber Flem Tally (Frank Melton)—all of whom represent the "better sort." The judge has two black servants in his household, Aunt Dilsey (Hattie McDaniel) and Jeff Poindexter (Stepinfetchit). The latter shuffles and speaks with a musical slurring that makes Bobcat Goldthwait sound like a master of elocution, and he plays the stereotyped part of the simple rural black man, shiftless, slow, lazy, and interested only in chickens, fishing, and music. This sort of thing made him the target of black social critics who lambasted him as the worst of the Uncle Tom players of the white man's Negro. Perhaps credit ought to be given to him for making the white man's stereotypes so self-parodically funny. Hattie McDaniel, on the other hand, is strong and merry and sarcastic—the only cast member capable of stealing scenes from Rogers, which she does from time to time. The best parts are where she seems to be singing spirituals but has substituted amusing words about whatever's been going on. Rogers sings harmony. There is a harmless enough romantic comedy subplot: the snobs lose and the lovers win. So far so good. The difficult part is the way the movie is set in a haze of romantically glorified nostalgia for the Confederate south. This provides a good deal for the character actors playing veterans to do, and suggests a sort of community of values, but the marching and the storytelling and the Confederate battle flags on parade and the black musicians playing "Dixie" and everything of the sort is unsettling. After all, the Civil War was fought in part to deal with the problem of slavery, while this movie simply glorifies the patriotism of southern men. Judge Priest can kid Jeff about getting into trouble by saying he's rescued him from lynching once already (it was a court appearance for stealing chickens the judge quashed by pointing out several veterans had stolen chickens as well when they were soldiers. Aunt Dilsey and Jeff aren't slaves, but they are still represented not as people but as types. Judge Priest may not be the most unregenerate view of the Confederacy—that distinction belongs to D.W. Griffith's Birth of a Nation—but there's a sufficiency of the sort of visual vocabulary of Confederate racism to taint an otherwise warm and well-intentioned movie.

Simple mastery, masterful simplicity: a great work

[FilmartDD · 8 August 2003]

John Ford adopts and works within the conventions of this homespun genre. As he did with the genre of every film he made. Yes, racial stereotyping -- but Ford knew it was, and let you see it for what it was. Yes, sentimental and corny, but knowing and loving that way, presenting it for what you the viewer want to make of it.

After seventy years, still so funny, so affectionate, so insightful. And topical for 2003: is there any better depiction of populist politics, or expression of faith in the democratic mystery of the common man?

The art that conceals art. Try to see it on a film-projected screen. I'm off to look at THE SUN SHINES BR

The Little Colonel Meets Colonel Sanders

[movingpicturegal · 7/10 · 10 May 2006]

In the South, Kentucky circa 1890, we meet Judge Priest (played by Will Rogers), laid-back circuit court judge who dresses like Colonel Sanders and has bigger interests than court trials - namely lawn croquet, mint juleps, Confederate veteran social gatherings, taffy pulls, and his new-found friendship with an accused chicken thief (played by Stepin Fetchit) put on trial in his courtroom, who gives the judge tips on fishing for catfish. The judge also enjoys matchmaking for his nephew Rome (Tom Brown), a young man who has just graduated from law school and who is in love with the pretty girl next door in spite of his stuffy mama's protests (seems the girl isn't good enough for the mighty "Kentucky Priest's", mama has her eye on someone else for her son). Soon the film switches gear when our young lawyer gets his first case and defends a local man put on trial.

This film was actually quite a bit better than I was expecting - Will Rogers, whose role dominates this film (aside from Henry B. Walthall, who has a smaller, but important piece here) was more interesting in this than I have seen him in other roles, probably because he comes across as more like himself than a character. Henry B. Walthall, the handsome "Little Colonel" in "The Birth of a Nation", still looks attractive here nearly 20 years later, a real silver fox to my eyes. Hattie McDaniel plays a stereotypical black mammy, singing and hanging laundry and preparing the judge yet another mint julep in most of her scenes, yet comes across with loads of charm. Really quite an interesting film.

An epitome of ambivalence

[samhill5215 · 6/10 · 29 May 2011]

There's quite a lot to recommend this one, the John Ford touches mainly. The way the scenes are arranged, the attention to detail are his trademarks. His direction is tight, focused, the actors deliver their lines in a believable, realistic manner. Nothing stagy about this. As for the actors they performed pretty much as expected. Will Rogers was his usual self, not the greatest of thespians but entertaining nonetheless. Anita Louise was simply delicious. I don't think I've ever seen her in better form and I credit Ford for extracting that performance as well as Tom Brown's who managed to keep his earnestness and wide-eyed innocence under check. Even stone-faced David Landau and bombastic Berton Churchill managed to give their stereotypical parts some originality.

My ambivalence is about the overt racism here, even granting the film's time frame and the period in our history it depicts. The least of it is that two of the central characters, Hattie McDaniel and Stepin Fetchit, are listed last in the credits, after Juror No. 12, whose only contribution was hitting the spittoon during the court scenes. Frankly it was difficult to watch despite some genuine tender scenes between the Rogers character and his servants. The one that stands out has him and McDaniel singing an impromptu spiritual and that one alone is worth the price of admission. The judge's relationship with the Fetchit character is much more problematic, even granting the "Coon" persona that Fetchit employed so successfully in his career he became a millionaire. There were just too many instances of the judge ordering him about just for the sake of it. It's painful to consider how humiliating it must have been for these two talented professionals to adopt their screen personae in order to earn a living.

I know I'm judging this film by 21st century standards, seventy-seven years after its release and if nothing else one might say that it exposed our country's shameful past, let the sunlight in on our deep, dark, secret. And in all fairness this is a film about southerners right after they had lost the Civil War. One can't really expect them to feel and express any remorse. People don't work that way. So from that angle I have no qualms. If anything I suspect the presentation of that society was probably mostly accurate. But I wonder at the motivations of the society that felt the need to make a film such as this, about a society that existed seventy years prior. And given Ford's sympathetic, realistic, treatment of American Indians in his later Westerns I wonder if he wasn't making just that point.

Doesn't make the head spin enough

[TheLittleSongbird · 6/10 · 27 May 2020]

Really admire John Ford and have done for some while, Westerns and non-Westerns. The story did sound like it had the makings of an interesting film if done correctly. There is some great talent in the cast, Will Rogers was always watchable and Hattie McDaniel had a knack for scene stealing in everything she was in. Felt rather iffy about hearing that Stepin Fetchit was in 'Judge Priest', who has never done much for me (race has absolutely nothing to do with why) and have always disliked it whenever he was imitated.

'Judge Priest' does nothing to change my mind. A shame, because actually to me it is not a bad film at all. Actually found 'Judge Priest' to be pretty decent and a pleasant diversion to distract one from all the bad times, with much to like while finding things that stuck out like a sore thumb. It is always interesting to see a Ford film from early on in his career, before he hit his stride, and one that didn't go into Western territory so evidence of his versatility as a director.

Plenty of good things here. 'Judge Priest' is a well made film, with handsome scenery and the photography (as always for a Ford film) is beautifully crafted and with the right amount of atmosphere. The music also fits nicely, not going for the sweeping, syrupy approach but instead a lighter touch that gels with the film's tone well. There are plenty of intriguing moments, while there is a nice mix of light-hearted humour and tenderness.

Absolutely loved that duet that has been mentioned by others. Ford's direction shows that he was showing a lot of talent and promise at this stage of his career, even if he was yet to hit his peak. Rogers is likeable and charismatic and McDaniel as expected lights up the screen during her screen time, being both amusing and sincere. Henry B. Walthall is another cast standout.

My negative general feelings of Fetchit did not change at all with 'Judge Priest' sadly. Here he is very annoying and with not much charisma, while his stereotypical behaviour is overdone, he is never funny or affectionate and the way his character is treated here is demeaning and condescending. Even when judging the film for its time, the racial stereotypes here did seem crude, have not dated well and it is easy to see why some would take offense.

Not all the humour and pathos come off brilliantly. Parts of the humour is corny, evident in the rather underwritten script, and makes one cringe and a couple of the more sentimental moments are cloying. The pace could have easily been tightened, as some of the film drags.

In conclusion, decent but not great. 6/10

Great Black actors in bit parts

[gardmawm · 3/10 · 29 September 2009]

I love old movies and was looking forward to seeing my first Will Rogers movie. However, this film is an embarrassment with decent actors struggling to overcome a corn-pone plot. The only reason to watch this creaking antique is to catch a glimpse of Hattie McDaniel and Stepin Fetchit who provide the "comic" relief. As Ms. McDaniel said, better to play the maid than to be one. She and Will Rogers were apparently actually good friends in real life, something which makes the movie's depiction of the happy, ignorant, thieving "darkies" doubly painful.

The plot is archaic not just because it depicts former slaves happily singing "My Old Kentucky Home" as they steal the white folks's food. It is based on a story that celebrates the Confederacy and its soldiers, with Will Rogers as a former soldier (now a judge). It ends with a triumphant march through town of the Confederate veterans on Memorial Day. Although Rogers mentions in passing that he's saved Stepin Fetchit from a lynching at some point, it's done as a humorous throw away line. I really think movies like this should be seen more often: they are an excellent reminder of the world as it was not so long ago and how grateful we should be that it has passed away.

In Old Kentucky

[bkoganbing · 8/10 · 27 March 2010]

Will Rogers did three films with director John Ford who probably knew best how to utilize Will Rogers folksy charm and personality on the screen. Judge Priest is the best of the three films Rogers did with Ford. The film is based on a character created by Rogers fellow American humorist Irvin S. Cobb.

Cobb's Judge Priest stories are based on characters created from his childhood in Paducah, Kentucky. Priest is a man very much like Will Rogers in real life, full of homespun wisdom and common sense. The casting is almost perfect, I can't think of anyone else who could have done the role better.

The film is an amalgam of several of those stories the main plot line being the assault of Frank Melton by town misanthrope David Landau. The case would normally come before Will Rogers, but he's forced to recuse himself because it's the first case of Tom Brown who is the nephew of Rogers. Brown is back home now, a newly minted lawyer and he's involved with a girl from the wrong side of the tracks, Anita Louise. There's a connection between his personal and professional life that Brown little suspects.

Cobb's childhood Kentucky is an idyllic place where even the newly freed black people are contented in their second class status. The racist overtone of Judge Priest is unmistakable and why the film is criticized today. However Irvin S. Cobb was painting an accurate picture of the servile blacks, servile because they had to be. But the Stepin Fetchit character goes way over the top.

Judge Priest was later remade by Ford in the Fifties as The Sun Shines Bright and though the more obvious racial stereotyping got cleaned up somewhat, it could never be eliminated from the film.

But the film because of the presence of Will Rogers gets a high rating from me. It's a chance to see one America's wittiest and wisest men at his homespun best and that opportunity should not be passed up.

A taste of things to come.

[barhound78 · 7/10 · 5 April 2007]

John Ford's often whimsical view of 19th century mid-west America is on full display here in this comic reflection about, as the authors prologue puts it, "the familiar ghosts of my own boyhood".

The immensely likable Will Rogers is the eponymous hero of the title. A small town judge who has sat on the local bench since the civil war ended without necessarily having all the right credentials to do so. Indeed, as Priest himself puts it, during his tenure he has tended to follow the spirit of the law rather than the letter of it! Never-the-less, his Confederate war-stories and his folksy approach to justice (and life in general) make him a much loved figure amongst the community... Much to the chagrin of an over-orating state senator (Berton Churchill) who is eyeing his position enviously!

Things are further complicated by the fact that Priests young lawyer nephew (Tom Brown) is caught in something of an innocent love triangle with the senators daughter (Rochelle Hudson) and his own childhood sweetheart(Anita Louise). When the latter unknowingly becomes the catalyst for what soon becomes the towns latest trial it is up for the Judge to get to the bottom of the matter before an innocent man - well, half-innocent anyway - is sent to gaol!

Of course, the courtroom drama isn't really what matters here. It is Fords heavily mythologised evocation of 1890's Kansas life that really takes centre stage. A laconic, gentry led backwater full of Southern ideals where the struggle of the Confederacy is idealised and celebrated and a town where a love of fishing, a tale of gallantry or the playing "Dixie" outside of a courtroom can swing a jury in a man's favour. A place where white men and singing Negroes happily co-exist as if the civil war never really changed anything anyway!

Yet, despite this somewhat outmoded (and superficially un-PC) rose-tinted view of mid-west life, Judge Priest succeeds in presenting itself with such charm and good-natured humour that it is almost lovable. Indeed, whilst Ford presents this as a heavily romanticised reminiscence he also plays it as a delightfully knowing satire too. To this end, the director makes particularly good use of the legendary (and hugely controversial) black comic Stepin Fetchit – manically lampooning every "coon" stereotype in the book.

Ford would go on to hone the kind of bawdy, knockabout humour and lively stock of characters found here almost constantly throughout his career. As such, Judge Priest may not quite be amongst the great directors very best work but, with the help of the talented Rogers and Fetchit, it is still an extremely enjoyable entry upon his illustrious CV.

John Ford Tells It Exactly Like It Wasn't

[Theo Robertson · 5/10 · 24 July 2013]

I watched this film down to a promise I made to another IMDb member that I would check out at least one film featuring Harry Tenbrook an extremely prolific extra of American cinema in the golden decades of Hollywood . In theory JUDGE PRIEST should be something of a classic being directed by John Ford and was a big box office hit on its release in 1934 . After seeing it I can't help thinking it was popular for all the wrong reasons

Set in Kentucky just after the American Civil War this would have been popular film for a 1934 audience of a certain dress sense , ones who wear white cloaks and hoods probably . The film starts with a black man facing court and some good old Southern boys reminiscing about the War . The black defendant is somewhat portrayed as retarded but being black has a great natural singing voice because ... well he's black . Indeed every black character has natural singing tones and are never happier than when singing their hearts out , so much so you might be forgiven for asking when are these stereotypes getting the vote ? The film ends with a rousing speech by a character lamenting losing the war because the South ran out of resources . This probably wasn't untrue but when you see the white Southern characters they're like the caricatures seen in THE DUKES OF HAZZARD and you'll be puzzled how any of these guys could field an army in the first place being dumb hicks

It's also a film with a misplaced sense of humour . We have one scene where a character takes it upon himself to have a mock conversation by emulating an out of sight black man sounding like British comedian Jim Davidson having a stroke . Certainly it can be classed as amusing but you'll find yourself laughing at the scene rather than with it . It's not surprising Harry Tenbrook appeared in this film uncredited and one wonders why John Ford just didn't ask to be credited as Alan Smithee ?

Excellent subtle '30's John Ford comedy.

[Boba_Fett1138 · 9/10 · 29 March 2008]

'30's comedies aren't exactly known for their subtlety and they mostly consist out of physical humor. This movie forms a great and wonderful exception to this.

This is one great subtle comedy that is mostly funny thanks to its very amusing and extreme stereotyped characters. It of course also really helps that they are being portrayed by some really great actors and are being directed by one great director; John Ford.

Will Rogers was totally great in his role. He seemed very natural with his acting but at the same time managed to play his character in a comical way. He was a greatly talented comedy actor, who was already a popular one during the silent era. He would had continued to play many more comical roles I'm sure, had he not died one year after this movie, in a plane crash piloted by the one-eyed pioneer aviator Wiley Post. Hattie McDaniel also does in this movie what she is best known for, playing a likable maid role. She is best known for her Acedemy Award winning role in "Gone with the Wind", which also made her the first black actor winning the great award.

Even though John Ford began directing movies as early as 1917, it wasn't until the '30's that his career really took off and he gained a real big celebrity status. He also isn't best known for comedies but mostly for his western's, often starring John Wayne. Till this date he is still the director with the most Academy Awards for best directing (4 of them). I think that says already enough about the qualities of this man. With this movie he also really seemed ahead of its time, by picking an all different and very humble approach of the story and comedy.

The story is actually quite simple but oh so great. It actually is quite well layered, even though the movie its simplicity might make you overlook this. It features lots of different element involving the characters in this movie, on both the comical as well as the more dramatic level. I also especially really like how the judge tries to hook up his cousin with his neighbor girl.

The movie also truly benefits from its typical southern atmosphere. The movie is set in a southern town, which shows in the movie its characters, their accents and just overall atmosphere of the entire movie.

This movie was a great pleasant surprise!

9/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

"Here, here, court called to order!"

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 13 September 2012]

Well the film may be all 'Aw shucks' and corn pone but it held an odd and entertaining fascination for me. I'd never seen Will Rogers in any type of vehicle before but knew that his homespun folksiness and insight into humanity were legendary. No doubt many from today's vantage point will find the picture's treatment of blacks to be condescending and offensive. However one would do well to consider it within the context of it's era, depicting an even earlier time in our country's history during the 1890's. As Judge Priest's (Rogers) maid Dilsey, Hattie McDaniel is a delight to behold, merrily singing away as she performs her chores while offering a unique counterpoint to the dimwitted and subservient Jeff Poindexter. Yes, Stepin Fetchit can be painful to watch at times, and every time I've seen him he's been a stereotype, but the man obviously had something on the ball to become the first black millionaire in the entertainment industry.

The main story revolves around an unobtrusively quiet citizen of the town who's brought up on charges of stabbing the local barber (Frank Melton). Quite honestly, Flem Talley's laugh alone was enough to drive me up a wall, and though I wouldn't say it about someone in real life, the character in this picture literally had it coming. Through gradual exposition we learn that Bob Gillis (David Landau) is the father of a local town beauty (Anita Louise as Ellie May Gillespie) being romanced by the Judge's nephew (Tom Brown), and also a hero during the Civil War for the Confederacy.

At times lively and raucous and at others quite serious and somber (Henry Walthall's testimony as Reverend Ashby Brand), "Judge Priest" is a genuine gem coming out of the early 1930's, a time when film makers were still finding their way out of the silent era. It deserves a modest recommendation for it's folksy and humorous approach, and if there's one line that I had to replay three times to be sure I heard it right, it was the one uttered by the old codger offering the Judge a swig of his home made corn whiskey - "You can smell the feet of the boy that ploughed it!" I'm really going to have to reconsider my choice of spirits in the future.

Despite prejudices, John Ford's film is worth seeing

[Andy-296 · 5/10 · 24 June 2008]

In a sleepy small town in Kentucky during the 1890s, an idiosyncratic judge (the Priest of the title, played by Will Rogers, in one of his last roles) defends the innocence of a taciturn man accused of assailing other town folk, by proving that he was a hero of the Confederacy during the Civil War. If you forget the blatant, unthinking racism of the movie (by the end, you have the dimwitted blacks of the town playing Dixie) and its saccharine sentimentality, this film is a good portrayal of the mores and traditions of the Scotch-Irish (or, if you prefer, the rednecks) that forms the backbone of America's personal character. Also, this movie also shows why Stepin Fetchit was such a controversial performer. Recommended with reservations.

Very good Ford

[Michael_Elliott · 25 February 2008]

Judge Priest (1934)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Wonderful film has Will Rogers playing the title role who has his own way of making justice prevail. Set in a small Kentucky town, the judge must battle a wide range of subjects but all of them seem to center around a mysterious man who is charged with assault. I wasn't too thrilled with the previous Rogers/Ford film that I watched but this one here hits all the right marks. Ford's love of Southern loyalty is certainly on full display from start to finish but he also paints a film that isn't really about anything yet it's about everything. Ford paints a terrific and authentic view of the South and even manages to work other items in like patriotic war battles and moving on in time. I think some of the best moments happen between Rogers and a black man named Jeff (Stepin Fetchit) who the judge saved from being hung. The two share several scenes together and their relationship comes off very sweet and human. The performances are all extremely good with Rogers leading the way as the soft spoken judge. Tom Brown and Anita Louise are also very good as Rogers' nephew and his girlfriend. The scene stealer comes from Henry B. Walthall who plays a Reverend with a secret past that comes out during the final courtroom scene. It's forgotten today that at one time Walthall was considered one of the greatest actors out there and his performance here is very thrilling and certainly grabs ones attention.

Here Come the Judge

[wes-connors · 7/10 · 31 December 2010]

Writer Irvin S Cobb explains, "The figures in this story are familiar ghosts of my own boyhood. The War between the States was over, but its tragedies and comedies haunted every grown man's mind, and the stories that were swapped took deep root in my memory. There was one man 'Down Yonder' I came specially to admire for he seemed typical of the tolerance of that day and the wisdom of that almost vanished generation. I called him 'Judge Priest', and I tried to draw reasonably fair likeness of him and his neighbors and the town in which he lived. An old Kentucky town in 1890."

The fair-minded judge is Will Rogers (as William "Billy" Priest), who reads the newspaper in his circuit courtroom while ex-Confederates try to jail sleepy ex-slave Stepin Fetchit (Jeff Poindexter) for stealing chickens. "Judge Priest" diverts the prosecutors with old Confederate stories, and takes the vagrant Mr. Fetchit back to his home, after a fishing trip. Meanwhile, singin' and dancin' "Mammy" Hattie McDaniel (as "Aunt" Dilsey) welcomes the Judge's handsome son Tom Brown (as Jerome "Rome" Priest) home. Mr. Brown has just received his law degree, from a college "up North"…

Brown loves pretty neighbor Anita Louise (as Ellie May Gillespie), but a secret about her parentage threatens their relationship. All is resolved by the good Judge with help from town Reverend Henry B. Walthall (as Ashby Brand). It ends with a rousing celebration of the old Confederacy by director John Ford; he pointedly triggers the final parade with a mesmerizing Mr. Walthall, who bravely fought for the South in D.W. Griffith's "The Birth of a Nation" (1915).

The Walthall connection would not have been lost on audiences in 1934, who made "Judge Priest" one of the year's biggest box office hits. That, and the racially insensitive impressions made by Fetchit and Ms. McDaniel, have sent this film to the back of the bus. "Judge Priest" was seen relatively rarely over the years, and still has the potential to offend. Fetchit's "Jeff" became a classic of its kind, unfortunately; at least, Mr. Rogers softens him. McDaniel is not able to infuse her "Mammy" with much depth or dignity (she would eventually accomplish this). Mr. Ford once called this his favorite film.

Great moments include Rogers talking to his deceased wife - the scene where he speaks to the wall portrait of "Margaret" and their two dead children is classic. And, that "lonesome kind of sound" of the whippoorwill, as described by Brown, possibly lingered with likely young cinema goer Hank Williams. Fox Film's clout in the "Academy Awards" process had dimmed by 1934, or Rogers and Ford might have received "Best Actor" and "Best Director" nominations; and, if "Supporting Actor" awards were offered, Walthall's dramatic courtroom performance would have certainly been considered for one.

******* Judge Priest (9/28/34) John Ford ~ Will Rogers, Tom Brown, Henry B. Walthall, Stepin Fetchit

Will Rogers sure seemed nice, Part II

[davidmvining · 7/10 · 29 November 2021]

An adaptation of Irvin S. Cobb's comic character of the same name, Judge Priest is a thoroughly Southern and nostalgic look at post-Civil War Kentucky centered around Will Rogers' titular character, based, assumedly, on a man Cobb knew in his youth. Much like Doctor Bull, this movie is largely carried by Rogers' performance, an aw-shucks authority figure who holds his power lightly, happier to find an easy way through life than strictly applying the law at all costs. He's a fun rock to build a film off of, and this surprisingly sweet look at Reconstruction life is an amusing and light entertainment.

Judge Priest is the circuit court judge in a small Kentucky town. His introduction is a case brought before him by his local rival, the former state senator prepping a run for Priest's judgeship, Horace Maydew (Berton Churchill) against Jeff Poindexter (Stepin Fetchit) for stealing some chickens. Priest is unconcerned with the case, much more concerned with a good fishing spot Poindexter notes, using Poindexter's past helping the Confederate cause to turn the jury against Maydew and end the affair with Priest and Poindexter fishing.

Priest, widowed for some years, having lost both wife and son to some unspoken of accident, has a nephew fresh from law school, having passed the bar and moved back to town from the North and waiting for his first client. His nephew, Jerome (Tom Brown), has some affection for Priest's young neighbor Ellie May (Anita Louise), but Jerome's mother Caroline (Brenda Fowler) has designs for Jerome to marry a woman with a better name than Ellie May, who doesn't even know who her father is. Priest, though, suddenly figures it out when he goes to visit his wife's grave and sees Bob Gillis (David Landau) laying flowers on the grave of Ellie May's mother. I like how Priest figures it out instantly, along with us, but holds onto the information until he decides to dole it out at opportune moments. It's a strong use of point of view.

Gillis gets into a pair of fights with Flem Talley (Frank Melton), the local barber after Talley says some ungentlemanly things about Ellie May, but Gillis will simply not explain why. He refuses to bring Ellie May's name into the situation even after he's arrested for attacking Talley and two other men with a knife. He didn't start the fight, but the words of three townspeople weigh more heavily than the words of a single outsider. When Priest must recuse himself from the case, he becomes part of the defense team along with Jerome, taking on his first client, and Priest is able to use his old tricks in new ways when he finds out the full history of Gillis' past.

This film is unabashedly pro-Lost Cause. The finale is a rousing speech of patriotism in service of that cause, and the movie ends with two renditions of "Dixie". These are men who fought in the Civil War and continue to feel pride for their service, sadness for the men they lost, and hope that their just cause will find victory again. It is largely the canvas on which the story is painted, and it convincingly conveys the time, place, and attitudes. It's mostly controversial these days because of Stepin Fetchit, the stage name for Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry, playing a stereotype that wasn't all that accepted in the day but made the man incredibly wealthy personally. It's there, as it has been in several Ford films, but whatever. It's there.

There's a lot to really like about this film. Rogers was just a fun personality that gave each character he played a humanity and warm patriarchal air that is kind of infectious when combined with his plain-talking sort of way. His aw-shucks attitude is endearing, and he uses his wits and whiles to win small moral victories along the way. Cleanly films by Ford, it's a nice film that deserves some reappraisal.

A light dose of Will Rogers humor

[SimonJack · 6/10 · 25 June 2018]

Will Rogers spread his humor across America during the height of the Great Depression. Rogers was a comedian, storyteller, actor, poet, writer and all around performer from Oklahoma. He traveled across the country, appeared on stage and performed on the radio. Rogers's homespun common sense humor registered with folks everywhere.

One sees that in full flower in "Judge Priest." Rogers stars as a small town Southern judge named Priest, who presides over local justice. John Ford directed the film. The plot is very light, and the film gives a look at the culture of the time and place. In modern times, some might cry, "stereotyping" for potdrayal of the African-Americans.

"Judge Priest" has some light humor with a look at the lingering affections of loyalty in the Confederacy well after the Civil War. But, the film doesn't have great comedy and otherwise is quite light.

Severely dated and offensive

[planktonrules · 4/10 · 30 December 2006]

This is a Will Rogers film directed by the great John Ford. However, despite this excellent pedigree, the film is a big misfire--particularly when seen with 21st century sensibilities. The biggest problem is that the film is also a Stepin Fetchit vehicle and this Black actor is at his worst in portraying the offensive and clichéd "stupid Negro" role. Fetchit is slow, shiftless and dumb--an image many White Americans at the time would laugh at or at least ignore. Now, his entire act just seems gross and insulting.

Now if you ignore Fetchit's rantings, what are you left with in this film? Well, even without it, you've got a comedy set in Kentucky that is not particularly interesting or compelling. While Rogers is good as the leading character and he did a funny imitation of Fetchit in one scene, the rest of the characters are either wooden and dull (such as the niece and nephew) or like characters from a Li'l Abner cartoon! This one-dimensionality and poor writing conspired to make this more of a historical curio than a film any sane person would want to see.

Will Rogers' Dixie Drama

[Ron Oliver · 10/10 · 19 January 2000]

Will Rogers stars in this backward glance at life in a small town of the deep South at the end of the 19th century, with its pleasures & joys, bigotries & suspicions.

Will is the local judge & champion of the social pariahs, not hesitant to stick his neck out to make a point or puncture a pompous ego. His unique brand of homespun humor is given ample scope to tickle our funny bone.

This is one of three films Will made with director John Ford, a remarkable collaboration. Others in the cast include Henry B. Walthal, Hattie McDaniel, Tom Brown, Anita Louise, Stepin Fetchit, Berton Churchill, Charley Grapewin & Rochelle Hudson.

There is some racial stereotyping in the film, not at all unusual for 1934 Hollywood.

"The name of Priest means something in Kentucky!"

[utgard14 · 6/10 · 24 July 2017]

Episodic comedy from John Ford that is a showcase for Will Rogers to do his homespun wisdom routine that made him famous. He plays the title character, a judge who helps a young couple being kept apart by meddling parents and helps a blacksmith charged with assault. It's a bit of a mixed bag. Rogers is good and he gets fine support from Henry B. Walthall, David Landau, Berton Churchill, and Charley Grapewin. But there's very little meat on the bone here. It's a slow-moving picture that seems content to shoot for the occasional amused grin rather than try for many laughs. Add to that the cringeworthy performance of Stepin Fetchit and you have a film whose appeal is pretty narrow.

Slower than molasses in a Kentucky winter

[LCShackley · 5/10 · 9 April 2008]

This film has about as much content and charm as could fit into a 30-minute short feature. Yet John Ford et al spread this syrupy molasses mixture over 80 minutes.

I like Will Rogers, but his performance as JUDGE PRIEST seems like he's talking in his sleep. His dialog goes so slowly that it almost seems like he's making it up on the spot, while recovering from a blow to the head.

The stock characters and situations may charm a hard-core Dixielander, but for modern viewers, JUDGE PRIEST will seem cornball or downright embarrassing. For instance, it's nice to hear Hattie McDaniel sing, but not Stephen Foster's line, "'tis summer, the darkies are gay." And there's only so much of Stepin Fetchit that anyone, black or white, can take in one sitting. (One of the worst moments is when Will Rogers does an excruciatingly slow bit of dialog where he plays two characters: his own and Fetchit's.) There are some cute Rogers moments, and Francis Ford steals the show as an old Reb jury member who has a sharp eye for a spittoon. But I found myself wanting to hit "fast forward" just to get this slow mule-cart of a movie to get going.

Excellent Ford/Will Rogers film!

[zetes · 9/10 · 28 September 2002]

This film is pure Ford, so, if you're a fan, definitely seek it out. Will Rogers plays the title character, a relaxed judge in a small, Southern town at the end of the 19th Century. He's a kind man with a homespun sense of justice. Others in the legal profession around him disdain him for his casualness, and Judge Priest dislikes their rigid sense of formality. The film opens with the dour Berton Churchill (best known for playing the wicked banker in Stagecoach) prosecuting an ignorant black man, Jeff, for stealing chickens. Jeff claims that he was out fishing for catfish at the time he is supposed to have nabbed the poultry. This activity excites Judge Priest so much that he lets Jeff go and they both go off fishing for catfish. Jeff afterwards becomes his servant. The plot of this film, which was the kernel for the plot of Ford's later (and lesser) Young Mr. Lincoln, involves a stabbing in self-defense. Judge Priest's young nephew, Jerome, back from law school, takes it up as his first case. The courtroom scenes are good for courtroom scenes, but that was never what interested me. The sense of Southern nostalgia, which I love so much from William Faulkner, is enveloping in this film. Will Rogers' kind judge is such a good character. He apparently improvised most of his dialogue, which was his style. He speaks slowly, but with conviction. It's a very good performance. People will certainly object to the treatment and characterization of black characters in the film. This is more just a product of the times, and it doesn't worry me much. Besides, I really found Judge Priest's interactions with Jeff and his maid, Dilsey (played by Gone with the Wind's Hattie McDaniel), touching. Aunt Dilsey, as she is called, is also the name of one of Faulkner's more memorable characters, the black maid in The Sound and the Fury. She and Will Rogers actually have quite a fantastic duet at one point. Rogers also sings with McDaniel and a few other black women, as well. 9/10.

Antebellum dreamland

[johnv-12737 · 7/10 · 13 December 2022]

Wow, just wow! Granted this movie could not be made today, or even 10 years later, for all the antebellum stereotypes on parade, but it's a little amazing to me that it got made at all, even in the 1930's. Will Rogers is fine as the common sense judge, forced to sit out a trial by a windbag political opponent's charge of bias, and the core of the story is heartwarming, like much of John Ford's work. But the Kentucky town depicted, with happy negroes and mint juleps and genteel manners, is like Reconstruction never happened, let alone the Civil War. Yes, it's a treat to hear Hattie McDaniels sing, especially the impromptu duet with Rogers. But the black folks are all so happy! Problems are apparently for white folks only. Less said about Stepin Fetchit the better, though his character is hardly marginalized and contributes greatly to the happy conclusion of the court case. Did I want to whistle "Dixie" at the end of the film? Yes, but I don't feel good about it.

Not Ford's finest hour

[MOscarbradley · 3/10 · 12 July 2016]

It's almost impossible now to watch John Ford's "Judge Priest" without putting it into an historical context. I'm not sure Afro-American audiences could watch it at all for this is probably the most patronizing picture of Afro-Americans ever put on the screen. Five minutes of Stepin Fetchit is enough for any man. Indeed ten minutes of Will Rogers' Judge Priest is probably enough for any man too. You have to dig deep to find its few charms. Ford thought enough of it to virtually remake it as "The Sun Shines Bright" with Charles Winninger as Priest. It was vastly superior in every respect, still patronizing but now tempered with hindsight as well as considerable sentiment while Winninger was magnificent as the judge. Ford may have been American cinema's premiere poet but this is not his finest hour.