Soul Man (1986)

Director:

Steve Miner

Writer:

Carol Black (written by)

Release Date:

24 October 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

A comedy with heart and soul.

Plot:

To achieve his dream of attending Harvard, a pampered teen poses as a young black man to receive a full scholarship.

Plot Keywords:

White Male Pretending To Be Black | Law School | Racial | Role Reversal | Interracial

Cast

C. Thomas Howell	...	Mark Watson
Rae Dawn Chong	...	Sarah Walker
Arye Gross	...	Gordon Bloomfeld
James Earl Jones	...	Professor Banks
Melora Hardin	...	Whitney Dunbar
Leslie Nielsen	...	Mr. Dunbar
Ann Walker	...	Mrs. Dunbar
James Sikking	...	Bill Watson (as James B. Sikking)
Max Wright	...	Dr. Aronson
Jeff Altman	...	Ray McGrady
Julia Louis-Dreyfus	...	Lisa Stimson
Maree Cheatham	...	Mrs. Dorothy Watson (as Marie Cheatham)
Wallace Langham	...	Barky Brewer (as Wally Ward)
Eric Schiff	...	Booey Fraser
Ron Reagan	...	Frank

Also Known As:

The Imposter (USA) (alternative title)

Runtime:

104 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | USA:PG-13 ([#28314]) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-8 | Sweden:7 | UK:15 (video rating) (uncut) (1987) | UK:PG (original rating) (cut) | West Germany:6 | Singapore:PG | Australia:M (cable rating)

Filming Locations:

Wheaton College - 26 E. Main Street, Norton, Massachusetts, USA

Company:

Balcor Film Investors

Trivia:

In the scene where Mark first approaches Gordon as a black man, Gordon was originally supposed to believe Mark was going to mug him. An entire scene was filmed in which Mark played along with it and made Gordon sing "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot". It was taken out because it was thought, that although funny when filmed, it was inappropriate and racist.

Quotes:

Gordon Bloomfeld: A black Negro? He never told me he was a black Negro. Thank you. Boy, just when you think you get to know somebody. I'm gonna go confront him with this information right now. Wow... Mark... a black Negro!

Movie Connections:

Featured in "I Love the '80s Strikes Back" (2003)

Soundtrack:

Black Girls

"obbbjection!"

"to what?"

"frankly, your tone of voice."

i watched soul man twice at the cinema when it came out; i loved it to bits.

i thought the movie was warm and funny and dealt with a difficult subject in an imaginative and sincere way.

i found c thomas very likeable and i thought his relationship with rae dawn chong and her young son was believable and natural. james earl jones was fantastic too.

my fave thing about the movie is ayre gross. i loved him in coupe de ville and on ellen and he's excellent here as mark's smart-alec best friend gordo. the scene where he has to defend mark in court is so funny.