Song of Freedom *** (1936, Paul Robeson, Elisabeth Welch, Esme Percy) – Classic Movie Review 11,286

Majestic bass Paul Robeson warbles his way through this fascinating, heartwarming, if long dated, tale of Johnny Zinga, a London dock worker who is turned by his encounter with an impresario into an opera star and then travels to Africa to discover his royal roots as the rightful king of the African island of Casanga.

Director J Elder Wills’s 1936 Song of Freedom is played with style and conviction by the two legendary black singers Robeson and Elisabeth Welch (as Robeson’s loyal wife Ruth Zinga), with an able production to back them up in an intriguing early Hammer Films production.

Song of Freedom is an important milestone film in its own special way.

Robeson sings Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho (traditional), Sleepy River, Lonely Road, Stepping Stones, Song of Freedom, and The Black Emperor (all music by Eric Ansell, lyrics by Henrik Ege).

Also in the cast are George Mozart, Esme Percy, Arthur Williams, Robert Adams, Ecce Homo Toto, Ronald Simpson, Jenny Dean, Joan Fred Emney, Bernard Ansell, Johnnie Scofield, Ambrose Manning, Arthur Elliott, Cornelia Smith, Alfred Goddard, Will Hammer and Sydney Benson.

American-born singer Elisabeth Welch appeared in British films of the 1930s and 1940s, made several memorable guest appearances in cabaret sequences, and starred opposite Paul Robeson in two features. She died on July 15, 2003, aged 99. Her parents had trouble getting married because her mother was Caucasian and her father was African and Native American, but they finally found a Catholic priest who married them in secret.

Philadelphia-born Paul Robeson was blacklisted for his leftist political beliefs in 1950, and was not able to make any films in the US or have any of his films shown there at that time.

© Derek Winnert 2021 Classic Movie Review 11,286

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