Michael_Elliott Ten Minutes to Live (1932) ** (out of 4)This Oscar Micheaux film clocks in at just 58-minutes and it pretty much has a little bit of everything in it. There's really no "plot" but it does have a few different story lines going on. One includes a movie producer trying to pick up a woman by offering her a role in his new film. Another subplot has a woman receiving a note saying that she will be dead in ten minutes. We also get a couple comedy acts as well as some musical numbers.Micheaux was producer and releasing quite a few pictures during this portion of his career and TEN MINUTES TO LIVE isn't nearly the worst but it's also not very good. The film is certainly very uneven but it remains mildly entertaining because the director manages to present a couple interesting acts and it's at least a very good time capsule to black entertainment from this period.The acts are interesting but I'd argue that none of them are overly good. The comedy bits are pretty weak and there's nothing ground-breaking about the musical numbers but it was just Micheaux's attempt to show black audiences some black talent. The two dramatic story lines aren't the most entertaining that you're going to see but they work well enough for what they are. They're basically two different short subjects mixed together with other shorts dealing with the music.TEN MINUTES TO LIVE features a couple decent performances scattered around and I'd argue that fans of race movies will at least get some mild entertainment out of it.

Hitchcoc This merely gives us a glimpse into Harlem Club scene of the 20's and 30's. We get a chance to see some dancing, some comedy, and other acts that would have otherwise been lost. As far as any plot or any continuity in a film, it is missing in this effort. There is very little here. The movie is mostly people sitting in the club, talking. Movie producers putting the moves on the young dancers and lying to them about their futures. There is an ongoing threat, some storytelling, but mostly, it's a dull connection among a group of numbers being performed at the club. Merely a period piece and a piece of black history.

dbborroughs Based on two short stories this is a very dated independent early black talky that was done on the cheap. The camera is essentially nailed to the floor to take in various scenes that advance the story which are inter-cut with scenes supposedly happening in and around a black night club (these appear to have been filmed on location with the camera placed in a rather odd angle). As a movie with a story this film is an absolute snoozer. The cast is uneven and the story really doesn't warrant being told. As a filmed record of the singers and dancers, comedians and musicians that perform its invaluable. These were very talented people doing things that are in their way more impressive than what we see on the stages of Broadway today. That said I really can't recommend this film unless you are interested in performers from the era when this film was made, the plot is uninteresting and the acting is often worse.

secragt First, this all-black 1930's production is admittedly unique. Extended dance sequences, vintage music, vaudeville and some unusual location camera work provide an invaluable look at a time in black history that you probably haven't seen much coverage of before. On the downside, the acting is junior high caliber and the plot is equally half-baked and thin. Certainly forward thinking in treating some blacks in the movie as thoughtful and sensitive beings at a time when some in America weren't on board with the concept. Unfortunately, it's just not very entertaining and has the look and feel of a silent movie that they dubbed with sound and dialogue sequences later to take advantage of the "talkie craze." If you're a student of black history, probably of minor interest. If you were led to believe this is a noirish black drama (as I was), you're probably better off going with DEVIL WITH A BLUE DRESS, HUSTLE AND FLOW or a Spike Lee joint.