Don't Play Us Cheap (1972) [The Criterion Collection]

Director: Melvin Van Peebles
Writer: Melvin Van Peebles
Stars: Thomas Anderson, Jay Van Leer, Robert Dunn

Melvin Van Peebles’s film version of his own Tony Award–nominated Broadway musical is a bold blend of theater and nervy, New Wave–inflected cinematic invention. A cast of Black stage and screen luminaries including Esther Rolle, Mabel King, and Avon Long stars in this charmingly offbeat, fablelike fantasy in which a pair of mischief-making devil-bats dispatched by Satan assume human form in order to wreak havoc on a Saturday-night house party in Harlem—only to find their diabolical plan thwarted by their hosts’ infectious generosity of spirit. Staged with ebullience, the original blues- and gospel-infused songs by Van Peebles burst forth in a life-affirming celebration of Black joy, tenderness, resilience, and strength.

Extras:
- 4K digital restoration, approved by filmmaker Mario Van Peebles in collaboration with The Museum of Modern Art, with 3.0 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
- Introduction by director Melvin Van Peebles from 1997
- Episode of Black Journal from 1972 featuring an interview with Van Peebles and musical performances by the film's cast
- English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing




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