Native Son (1986 film)

Set in Chicago in the 1930s, Bigger Thomas, an African American who lives in an impoverished neighborhood, is employed by a prosperous white family who live in the suburbs of a major city. The money Bigger makes at his new job will be used to supplement his mother's income. As a chauffeur, he is directed by the father of the family to take Mary, the daughter, to the university. Instead, Mary decides to pick up her Socialist boyfriend, Jan, and to spend the time drinking and partying.

Jan and Mary portray a young liberal couple who venture into a black neighborhood with Bigger for the sole purpose of being entertained at Ernie's, a black nightclub. On the way home, Mary becomes inebriated and Bigger must get her to her bedroom without being detected. Mary's mother, who is blind, enters the room and Bigger panics at the thought of being caught with a white woman. He accidentally kills Mary by placing a pillow over her head to keep her quiet. Still frightened, Bigger disposes of the body in the furnace, possibly because he feels he would not get a fair trial for the accidental death of a white woman. Meanwhile, Jan is wanted by the police for Mary's murder and Bigger plays a role in the accusations against him.

Richard Wesley wrote the script.^[2] According to Judith Michaelson of the Los Angeles Times, not only was the violence reduced, but the emphasis on Communism was also "muted" compared to the book.^[3]

Victor Love stated that his appearance and voice not being "street" meant that he did not feel he was initially seriously considered for the role. He was auditioning for Othello, which he did not get, when he was called to perform as Bigger. Love felt that Wright did not really mean for Bigger Thomas to be played unsympathetically and that instead he was afraid to ask people to care for Bigger.^[4] According to Love the filmmakers initially refused him the role, but later offered it to him.^[5][6]

According to Julia Wright, the daughter of Richard Wright, there were shoots depicting Bessie's death, but the filmmakers did not complete a shoot that they liked.^[7] The film producers ultimately removed the murder of Bessie to make the protagonist more sympathetic to audiences. Freeman opposed this and argued that this interfered with how the character becomes increasingly damaged in the source work.^[8] Freeman stated "The scene is pivotal in the novel because it underscores the disintegration of Bigger Thomas, a victim of racism and segregation in Chicago of the 1930's who in turn becomes a victimizer."^[2] Producer Diane Silver argued in favor of the change, stating "The angst that worked in the book was impossible to put on the screen."^[2] American Playhouse producer Lindsay Law also supported the change arguing that an audience would disengage from the character if he kills Bessie and that "The book had more layers than you could explore in a two-hour film."^[2] Julia Wright argued that the performance of Love meant that the murder scene was not necessary.^[7]