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.
Review of Judge Priest
