- Children of a Lesser God
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For the play, see Children of a Lesser God (play).
Children of a Lesser God 
Theatrical release posterDirected by Randa Haines Produced by Burt Sugarman
Patrick J. PalmerWritten by Hesper Anderson
Mark MedoffBased on Children of a Lesser God by Mark Medoff Starring William Hurt
Marlee Matlin
Piper Laurie
Philip BoscoMusic by Michael Convertino Cinematography John Seale Editing by Lisa Fruchtman Distributed by Paramount Pictures Release date(s) October 3, 1986 Running time 119 minutes Country United States Language English
American Sign LanguageBox office $31,853,080[1][2] Children of a Lesser God is a 1986 American romantic drama film directed by Randa Haines and written by Hesper Anderson and Mark Medoff. An adaptation of Medoff's Tony Award-winning stage play of the same name, the film stars William Hurt and Marlee Matlin as two employees at a school for the deaf: a hearing speech teacher and a deaf custodian, respectively, whose conflicting ideologies on speech and deafness create tension and discord in their developing romantic relationship. Marking the film debut for deaf actress Matlin, Children of a Lesser God is notable for being the first film since the 1926 silent film You'd Be Surprised to feature a deaf actor in a major role.[3]
After meeting deaf actress Phyllis Frelich in 1977 at the University of Rhode Island's New Repertory Project, playwright Medoff wrote the play Children of a Lesser God to be her star vehicle.[4] Based partially on Frelich's relationship with her hearing husband Robert Steinberg[5], the play chronicles the turmoiled relationship and marriage between a reluctant-to-speak deaf woman and an unconventional speech pathologist for the deaf. With Frelich starring, Children of a Lesser God opened on Broadway in 1980, received three Tony Awards, including Best Play, and ran for 887 performances before closing in 1982.[6]
Enjoying the vast success of his Broadway debut, Medoff, with follow writer Anderson, penned a screenplay adapted from the original script. Though many changes were made, the core love story remained intact. The film version premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 13, 1986, and was released widely in the United States on October 3 of the same year. Not unlike its source material, the film generally gained praise from the hearing and deaf communities alike. It received five Academy Award nominations, including Matlin's win for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role.[7] Only 21-years-old at the time, Matlin is the youngest actress to receive the award and the only deaf Academy Award recipient (in any category) to date.[8]
Contents
Plot
Sarah Norman (Marlee Matlin) is a troubled young deaf woman working as a cleaner at a school for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in New England. An energetic new teacher, James Leeds (William Hurt), arrives at the school and encourages her to set aside her insular life by learning how to talk.
As she already uses sign language, Sarah resists James's attempts to get her to talk. Romantic interest develops between James and Sarah and they are soon living together, though their differences and mutual stubbornness eventually strains their relationship to breaking point, as he continues to want her to talk, and she feels somewhat stifled in his presence.
Sarah leaves James and goes to live with her estranged mother (Piper Laurie) in a nearby city, reconciling with her in the process. However, she and James later find a way to resolve their differences.
The title of the film comes from the twelfth chapter of Alfred Lord Tennyson's "Idylls of the King." The stanza in which the line is contained reads as follows:
‘I found Him in the shining of the stars,
I marked Him in the flowering of His fields,
But in His ways with men I find Him not.
I waged His wars, and now I pass and die.
O me! for why is all around us here
As if some lesser god had made the world,
But had not force to shape it as he would,
Till the High God behold it from beyond,
And enter it, and make it beautiful?
Or else as if the world were wholly fair,
But that these eyes of men are dense and dim,
And have not power to see it as it is:
Perchance, because we see not to the close;—
For I, being simple, thought to work His will,
And have but stricken with the sword in vain;
And all whereon I leaned in wife and friend
Is traitor to my peace, and all my realm
Reels back into the beast, and is no more.
My God, thou hast forgotten me in my death;
Nay — God my Christ — I pass but shall not die.’[9] [10]Production
The movie was shot primarily in and around Saint John, New Brunswick with the Rothesay Netherwood School serving as the main set. Aside from locations in Saint John and Rothesay Netherwood School, various sets were constructed by Saint John local, Keith MacDonald.
Cast
- William Hurt as James Leeds
- Marlee Matlin as Sarah Norman
- Piper Laurie as Mrs. Norman
- Philip Bosco as Dr. Curtis Franklin
- Allison Gompf as Lydia
Box office
Although budget details are not known, the film opened at number 5 at the North American box office with an opening weekend gross of $1,909,084. The film stayed in the Top 10 for 8 weeks and grossed a total of $31,853,080 in North America.[11]
Awards
- Academy Award (1987): Best Actress in a Leading Role - Marlee Matlin
- Golden Globe (1987): Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama - Marlee Matlin
- Berlin International Film Festival (1987): Silver Bear - Randa Haines[12]
- Berlin International Film Festival (1987): Reader Jury of the "Berliner Morgenpost" - Randa Haines
References
- ^ http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=childrenofalessergod.htm
- ^ http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/1986/0COLG.php
- ^ Schuchman, John S. (1999). Hollywood Speaks: Deafness and the Film Entertainment Industry. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press. p. 82. ISBN 978-0252068508.
- ^ Medoff, Mark (1981). Children of a Lesser God. Clifton, NJ: James T. White & Company. p. vii. ISBN 978-0883710326.
- ^ Lang, Harry G.; Meath-Lang, Bonnie (1995). Deaf Persons in the Arts and Sciences: A Biographical Dictionary. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. p. 130. ISBN 978-0313291708.
- ^ "Children of a Lesser God". Internet Broadway Database. The League of American Theatres and Producers. http://www.ibdb.com/production.asp?ID=3694. Retrieved May 26, 2011.
- ^ "Results Page - Academy Awards® Database - AMPAS". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/DisplayMain.jsp?curTime=1306336005353. Retrieved May 26, 2011.
- ^ "Help Page - Academy Awards® Database - AMPAS". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/ampas_awards/help/statistics/oldyoungacting.html. Retrieved May 26, 2011.
- ^ Sherrod, Kerryn. "Children Of A Lesser God". Turner Classic Movies Database. Turner Classic Movies. http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/87771%7C0/Children-Of-A-Lesser-God.html. Retrieved 11/1/11.
- ^ Tennyson, Alfred Lord. "Idylls of the King". eBooks@Adelaide. University of Adelaide, South Australia. http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/t/tennyson/alfred/idylls/. Retrieved 11/1/11.
- ^ "Children of a Lesser God". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=weekend&id=childrenofalessergod.htm. Retrieved 2010-09-11.
- ^ "Berlinale: 1987 Prize Winners". berlinale.de. http://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1987/03_preistr_ger_1987/03_Preistraeger_1987.html. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
External links
Films directed by Randa Haines 1980s Something About Amelia (1984) · Children of a Lesser God (1986)1990s 2000s The Outsider (2002) · The Ron Clark Story (2006)Categories:- 1986 films
- American films
- American romantic drama films
- Films featuring a Best Actress Academy Award winning performance
- Films featuring a Best Drama Actress Golden Globe winning performance
- Films based on plays
- American Sign Language films
- 1980s drama films
- 1980s romance films
- English-language films
- Films directed by Randa Haines
- Films about educators
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