Rating: 
Summary: A family movie without sex, violence and bad language.
Review: I haven't felt this good about a movie in a long time. Not since "A Trip to Bountiful" anyway. I don't know how I missed it on the big screen. Thank god for DVD. (Too bad Bountiful is not out on DVD yet. )It is a beautifully-made family movie without sex, violence and foul language (or even harsh language for that matter). If you want any of that or fast-paced action (Wesley Snipes in not cast in his usual role) you will not get it here. In fact, I don't know why it wasn't rated G. I wont bother to repeat the story since it has been covered by other reviewers here. Maya Angelou has made a slow-paced but even-tempoed film that chronicles a family's struggle to stay together. In her subtle way she almost succeeds in making us fail to notice that this is an African-American film with barely a white face seen except in flash-back sequences. Her subtlety also extends to portraying strength in her female characters even when they are flawed. It is enlightening to watch how she blends societal contrasts so effortlessly - the contrast between the haves and the have-nots and the one between urban and rural America. All in all, this is a good movie to watch with your family.
Rating:
Summary: All THat and More
Review: I wasn't able to see this film initially due to me moving back south, but the minute I saw it on video, I rented it, the minute I saw it on sale, I bought it and don't regret it. I am not surprised that this film is not up there as one of the best family films ever made. Here you have a movie made by one of the most talented and versatile women in this country, a cast of some of the best black actors around, and when the movie comes out,it gets little notice. Go figure. When I first saw this movie, I fell in love with it. The fact that this guy took the very object that his father was sold for and it stayed in that family from generation to generation. Beautiful. I think that the movie should be viewed in schools,churches,wherever you have an audience.
Rating:
Summary: Great Movie
Review: I watched this movie the first time just because of the cast. I've always thought Alfre Woodard was wonderful, and don't get me started about Mary Alice, Al Freeman Jr., and Esther Rolle! I just loved it, and I caught it again when it ran on cable a while back. I've told everyone I know to see it. It's what so-called traditional family values are all about: caring and integrity and your family heritage, and, most of all, LOVE! It was also good to see Wesley Snipes step out of his usual bada*** roles into something different--he pulls it off pretty well.
Rating:
Summary: Hooray! Black Families Finally Receives Accolades
Review: In a time when all that is written, produced and promoted for public consumption is about the desintegration of the Black family, this film finally shows our true side. Love, strength and loyalty. Don't be fooled by the southern title. It's a movie for us up north too.
Rating: 
Summary: Loving told story
Review: In recent years, the number of movies and TV shows about African-Americans and other minority groups has declined. I am simply stating a fact, for I have no idea why this has happened. Whatever the reasons, I am always overjoyed when a movie like Down in the Delta makes it to the screen. It is true that Down in the Delta is not a major piece of film making. Director Maya Angelou, who is by profession a famous poet, does not have the experience behind the camera to bring us a polished product. What she does know how to do is to weave a tale quietly and effectively. This is the story of the Sinclair family and of a candelabra called Nathan. Nathan has been in the family since the end of the Civil War and is now in the possession of Rosa Sinclair [Mary Alice], who long ago moved from the Mississippi Delta to Chicago. She is a middle-aged widow trying to cope with her dysfunctional daughter, Loretta [Alfre Woodard]. Loretta has two children. They all live with Rosa in a small, but well-kept apartment in a rough Chicago neighborhood. Rosa is a strong woman, and she believes that family nurtures the soul. This may be an old-fashioned notion, but it remains an inspiring one. When Loretta has yet another bout with drugs and alcohol, Rosa asks her brother Earl [Al Freeman, Jr.] if he will take Loretta and the children in for the summer. Earl still lives in the Delta. Loretta and the kids find themselves in a different world. While it is never stated, it is obvious that director Angelou means for us to understand that the South has undergone changes since the great migrations to Northern urban areas. As cities like Chicago have become increasingly rough, the South has gotten much more livable. The Sinclairs there live in a fine old home in the country outside a small town. Earl has his own restaurant called Just Chicken, because that's all he serves. No one is rich, but everyone works. The town has a sense of community. Loretta's son discovers that school is much more pleasant, but also academically harder. Loretta herslef discovers that people are more willing to help her overcome her lack of work skills. The Mississippi Sinclairs are not without problems. Earl misses his son, who's a lawyer in Atlanta. His wife Annie [Esther Rolle] has Alzheimer's disease. When Loretta suggests that Annie might be better off in a home, Earl replies that she is home. As the weeks go by, Loretta and her children learn the importance of family, something her mother has been trying to teach her for years. Throughout the movie there is the story of Nathan - or rather the story of its meaning to the family. The flashbacks are minimal, but in the end this plot device works well in summing up the point of the story.
Rating: 
Summary: This movie is so confusing that it is boring
Review: Instead of going from picture to picture they go from picture to blank screen and by the end this movie is so pathetic that it takes a min... just to see what is going to happen next. This movie is a movie that I will say stay away from unless you want a confusing barley intertaning intaresting story. I would have given this movie Two stars but I hate giving movies bad reviews unless they where one of the worst movies I have seen.
Rating:
Summary: An underrated gem
Review: Maya Angelou's directorial debut underperformed at the box office, but don't let that discourage you from seeing this winner. It concerns a drug-abusing mother (a great Alfre Woodard) who can't kick her habit or hold down a job. In other words, this girl's a mess. In an effort to get her act together, she takes her kids down south to begin a new life. At times, the movie has a made-for-TV feel, but it's an otherwise riveting debut for Angelou. You can feel her prescence in her directorial style; the words spoken from a few of the actors have a certain poetic flow. So, why, then, did I give it a rating of only 4 stars? Because the DVD has absolutely no features! No trailer! No production notes! Nada! I hope Miramax will revisit this film and give it a bunch of decent features including a making-of featurette. Silll, even without the extras, this film still gets the green light from me.
Rating:
Summary: An underrated gem
Review: Maya Angelou's directorial debut underperformed at the box office, but don't let that discourage you from seeing this winner. It concerns a drug-abusing mother (a great Alfre Woodard) who can't kick her habit or hold down a job. In other words, this girl's a mess. In an effort to get her act together, she takes her kids down south to begin a new life. At times, the movie has a made-for-TV feel, but it's an otherwise riveting debut for Angelou. You can feel her prescence in her directorial style; the words spoken from a few of the actors have a certain poetic flow. So, why, then, did I give it a rating of only 4 stars? Because the DVD has absolutely no features! No trailer! No production notes! Nada! I hope Miramax will revisit this film and give it a bunch of decent features including a making-of featurette. Silll, even without the extras, this film still gets the green light from me.
Rating:
Summary: A REAL "FAMILY" FILM!
Review: Nowadays when I see the words "family film", I take it with a grain of salt. Not this time! At last, a film I could sit down and watch with my teenagers and not have to hit stop. An intelligent film with real people and real situations you could believe and relate to. A film that emphasizes the importance of family, tradition and unconditional love. I look forward to more films from Maya Angelou.
Rating:
Summary: First-Rate Drama
Review: Once again, Alfre Woodard shows us why she's one of the top American actresses. I do not understand why she isn't in more big-budget films. Just remember, this is the actress that lit up the stage twenty years ago in Ntozake Shange's For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide. . . ." Down in the Delta is a splendid film, rich in character development, themes, and filmmaking. Angelou is to be applauded. We need more films like this!
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