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The Man

  • 19721972
  • GG
  • 1h 33m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
371
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
James Earl Jones in The Man (1972)
  • Drama
An African-American senator becomes the designated survivor of a tragic accident that kills the President of the United States. Now the first black President, he attempts to end the bigotry ... Read allAn African-American senator becomes the designated survivor of a tragic accident that kills the President of the United States. Now the first black President, he attempts to end the bigotry and divide standing in his way.An African-American senator becomes the designated survivor of a tragic accident that kills the President of the United States. Now the first black President, he attempts to end the bigotry and divide standing in his way.
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
371
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Joseph Sargent
  • Writers
    • Irving Wallace(novel)
    • Rod Serling(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • James Earl Jones
    • Martin Balsam
    • Burgess Meredith
Top credits
  • Director
    • Joseph Sargent
  • Writers
    • Irving Wallace(novel)
    • Rod Serling(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • James Earl Jones
    • Martin Balsam
    • Burgess Meredith
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 19User reviews
    • 12Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos8

    The Man (1972)
    James Earl Jones in The Man (1972)
    James Earl Jones in The Man (1972)
    The Man (1972)
    James Earl Jones in The Man (1972)
    James Earl Jones in The Man (1972)
    The Man (1972)

    Top cast

    Edit
    James Earl Jones
    James Earl Jones
    • Douglass Dilmanas Douglass Dilman
    Martin Balsam
    Martin Balsam
    • Jim Talleyas Jim Talley
    Burgess Meredith
    Burgess Meredith
    • Senator Watsonas Senator Watson
    Lew Ayres
    Lew Ayres
    • Noah Calvinas Noah Calvin
    William Windom
    William Windom
    • Arthur Eatonas Arthur Eaton
    Barbara Rush
    Barbara Rush
    • Kay Eatonas Kay Eaton
    Georg Stanford Brown
    Georg Stanford Brown
    • Robert Wheeleras Robert Wheeler
    Janet MacLachlan
    Janet MacLachlan
    • Wandaas Wanda
    Martin E. Brooks
    Martin E. Brooks
    • Wheeler's Lawyeras Wheeler's Lawyer
    • (as Martin Brooks)
    Simon Scott
    Simon Scott
    • Hugh Gaynoras Hugh Gaynor
    Patric Knowles
    Patric Knowles
    • South African Consulas South African Consul
    Robert DoQui
    Robert DoQui
    • Websonas Webson
    Anne Seymour
    Anne Seymour
    • Ma Bloreas Ma Blore
    Edward Faulkner
    Edward Faulkner
    • Secret Service Manas Secret Service Man
    Gilbert Green
    Gilbert Green
    • Congressman Handas Congressman Hand
    Lew Brown
    • Gilbertas Gilbert
    Philip Bourneuf
    Philip Bourneuf
    • Chief Justice Williamsas Chief Justice Williams
    Reginald Fenderson
    Reginald Fenderson
    • Reverend Otis Waldrenas Reverend Otis Waldren
    • Director
      • Joseph Sargent
    • Writers
      • Irving Wallace(novel)
      • Rod Serling(screenplay) (story)
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      James Earl Jones was interviewed about portraying a fictional black U.S. president a few days before Barack Obama was sworn in as President. Jones said that he had misgivings about the film, mostly because they were blindsided when the project (which was planned and budgeted as a TV movie) was released in theaters, and he wished that they'd had more time and resources to make a stronger final film.
    • Quotes

      Wanda: How are you, Dad?

      Douglass Dilman: Numb! Numbness being a, er, defence mechanism.

      Wanda: Against what?

      Douglass Dilman: Against... against breaking into small pieces. They flew you here? From Ohio?

      Wanda: On an Air Force jet, no less. Two Secret Servicemen came right into my dorm and got me.

      Douglass Dilman: What's known as the long arm of Government!... It's nice to have you in the nation's capital for something other than a protest march.

      Wanda: Well, I guess I'll have to cool that sort of thing for a while.

      Douglass Dilman: I think maybe so. You are now a member of the nation's First Family, small though it may be. So the next time you throw rocks at the Establishment, keep in mind that the father you hit may be your own.

      [beat]

      Douglass Dilman: Perhaps by tomorrow morning, I can get my hands to stop shaking. I'm the wrong one, Wanda.

      Wanda: Why?

      Douglass Dilman: They were expecting a black Messiah. You can tell them what they got, eh?

      Wanda: What they got is a black President. That's more than they've ever gotten.

      Douglass Dilman: May I remind you, not by election. And the rest of the country is going to want an Uncle Tom. Well, I can't be what everybody wants me to be. And I'm a little afraid that I'm going to cause this country more chaos then it really deserves.

      Wanda: Well, I don't give a damn about the rest of this country, their sensitivities, their racial hang-ups. Do me a favour, will you, please? Stop being the pedantic professor with an aversion to causes. Stop being "Senator Ineffectual". There are fifteen million people out there, tied to you by the colour of your skin. And if you go under, they drown with you. They don't want you humble. They don't want you apologetic. They just want you President.

    • Connections
      Featured in The Dick Cavett Show: Episode dated 19 July 1972 (1972)

    User reviews19

    Review
    Top review
    Good intentions, weak results
    "The Man" is dominated by a screenplay written by Rod Serling in his oh-so-earnest mode. The movie benefits from Serling's sincere convictions towards racial progress, but the film is undercut by Serling's tin ear for dialogue.

    In the opening scene, a White House breakfast is in progress even though the President and the Speaker of the House are visiting a mediaeval cathedral in Europe. Suddenly news arrives that the cathedral has collapsed: the President and the Speaker are dead. White House aides inform Vice President Calvin (a good performance by Lew Ayres) that he's now the chief executive. But Calvin is old and frail, and he refuses the job. I found this contrived: if the Vice President isn't medically fit to replace the President at an instant's notice, then he isn't fit to be Vice President and shouldn't hold the office.

    By an obscure but apparently genuine constitutional fluke, the Presidential succession devolves to an obscure senator named Douglass Dilman (James Earl Jones) who happens to be Negro. Yes, a black man is now President!

    "The Man" raises some interesting issues. Jones gives an intelligent and dignified performance as the black President who refuses to see his job promotion as proof of racial progress. He knows he wasn't *elected* to the job, and he doesn't believe that America will elect a black President any time soon. (This was 1972.)

    William Windom, who usually played sympathetic roles, gives an excellent performance as a bigoted white politician who covets the Presidency. (The posters for this movie depicted Windom speaking a racial epithet.) Charles Lampkin is excellent in a small role as a black Congressman. And, of course, now that a black man is in the Oval Office, there's a plot to assassinate him...

    For some reason, comedian Jack Benny gets very large billing for a very brief scene in "The Man". He appears only in the opening teaser sequence: when the opening credits roll with Benny's name on the screen, we've already seen his entire performance and he won't show up again! Playing himself, Jack Benny performs a comedy monologue during the White House breakfast. But Benny's legendary timing is off, and he doesn't bother to conceal that he's reading his jokes off a legal pad. I'm a Jack Benny fan, but he disgraces himself here.

    There are some good scenes in "The Man" but there's a lot of sermonising too, and very little action. I recommend this film with reservations, and I'll give it 5 points out of 10. I sincerely believe that the U.S.A. will eventually elect a black President ... but, sad to say, I also believe that the first African-American President will almost certainly be assassinated. I hope I'm wrong.
    helpful•10
    6
    • F Gwynplaine MacIntyre
    • May 27, 2002

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 19, 1972 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Le numéro quatre
    • Filming locations
      • Samuel Goldwyn Studios - 7200 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • ABC Circle Films
      • Lorimar Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 33 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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