{"id":5805,"date":"2008-08-02T10:26:43","date_gmt":"2008-08-02T17:26:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5805"},"modified":"2020-12-14T16:05:58","modified_gmt":"2020-12-14T23:05:58","slug":"judge-priest-1934","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5805","title":{"rendered":"Judge Priest (1934)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;The figures in this story are familiar ghosts of my own boyhood&#8230;&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Poster.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Poster-200x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-57846\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Poster-200x300.png 200w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Poster-684x1024.png 684w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Poster-85x128.png 85w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Poster-180x270.png 180w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Poster.png 747w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA judge (Will Rogers) in turn-of-the-century Kentucky helps his nephew (Tom Brown) romance a fatherless neighbor girl (Anita Louise).\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Comedy<\/li>\n<li>Courtroom Drama<\/li>\n<li>Deep South<\/li>\n<li>John Ford Films<\/li>\n<li>Judges<\/li>\n<li>Will Rogers Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Judge Priest<\/em> &#8212; the second of Will Rogers&#8217; three collaborations with director John Ford &#8212; is considered by many to be the best of the bunch. As the long-time judge in a small southern town (circa 1890), Rogers&#8217; Judge Priest &#8212; like his <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5810\">Doctor Bull<\/a> &#8212; is perhaps a bit too complacent in his status, taking for granted that his well-meaning nature will prevent nay-sayers from complaining about either his decisions or his laid-back demeanor. From the very beginning of the film, we learn that Priest is the type of judge who would rather read a newspaper than listen to pompous lawyers grandstanding in his courtroom:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Newspaper.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Newspaper-1024x728.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"455\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-57849\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Newspaper-1024x728.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Newspaper-300x213.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Newspaper-128x91.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Newspaper-768x546.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Newspaper-380x270.png 380w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/08\/Judge-Priest-Newspaper.png 1383w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\nand who feels no compunction at all about going fishing with an accused thief (<a href=\"http:\/\/www.answers.com\/topic\/stepin-fetchit\">Stepin Fetchit<\/a>) who was on trial in front of him not half-an-hour earlier. His insistence on helping his love-struck nephew (Brown) romance a fatherless young woman (Louise) against his snooty sister&#8217;s protestations is further proof that &#8220;Judge Priest&#8221; (a strategically chosen name, no doubt) is able to see beyond the petty constraints of social prejudices. <\/p>\n<p>It should be noted that while Fetchit&#8217;s role in this film &#8212; as well as that of Hattie McDaniel (Priest&#8217;s housekeeper) and other &#8220;happy&#8221; African-American servants &#8212; falls into stereotypically offensive territory, Rogers&#8217; interactions with both Fetchit and McDaniel allow for a slightly more nuanced representation of race relations than was usual for the time. His laid-back friendship with Fetchit implies that he cares more about enjoying life than maintaining the illusion of racial superiority, and his participation in McDaniel&#8217;s &#8220;call and response&#8221; singing while she&#8217;s cleaning once again shows that the pure joy of music making means more to him than either class or race. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/judge-priest-stepin.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/judge-priest-stepin.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5808\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/judge-priest-mcdaniel.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/judge-priest-mcdaniel.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5809\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>While minor, these tiny deviations from the norm make it clear that Rogers really <em>did<\/em> try to live by his famous credo of &#8220;never meeting a man [sic] he didn&#8217;t like&#8221;. It&#8217;s too bad, then, that Ford&#8217;s decision to end the film with a group of black man cheerily bursting into &#8220;Dixie&#8221; outside the courtroom ultimately turns the film into yet another naively revisionist depiction of Southern history. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Will Rogers as Judge Priest<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/judge-priest-rogers.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/07\/judge-priest-rogers.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-5807\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Many subtly humorous moments<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, but only to see Rogers in one of his most notable screen appearances; the film itself remains flawed. Listed as a film with Historical Importance and a Personal Recommendation in the back of Peary&#8217;s book.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Noteworthy Performance(s)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> (<span style=\"color:red;font-weight:bold;\">Listed in <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-static\/1001Movies.htm\"><em>1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die<\/em><\/a><\/span>) <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0025335\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1934\/10\/12\/archives\/presenting-dr-rogers.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.combustiblecelluloid.com\/classic\/judgepriest.shtml\">Combustible Celluloid Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/79946\/judge-priest#articles-reviews?articleId=133210\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.classicfilmguide.com\/index.php?s=other_reviews&#038;item=432\">Classic Film Guide Review (Spoilers Alert)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeout.com\/movies\/judge-priest\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;The figures in this story are familiar ghosts of my own boyhood&#8230;&#8221; Synopsis: A judge (Will Rogers) in turn-of-the-century Kentucky helps his nephew (Tom Brown) romance a fatherless neighbor girl (Anita Louise). Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Comedy Courtroom Drama Deep South John Ford Films Judges Will Rogers Films Review: Judge Priest &#8212; the second of Will Rogers&#8217; three collaborations with director John Ford &#8212; is considered by many to be the best of the bunch. As the long-time judge&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5805\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5805","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5805","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5805"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5805\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57850,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5805\/revisions\/57850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5805"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5805"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5805"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}