The Emperor Jones 1933 film

The Emperor Jones is a 1933 American pre-Code film adaptation of Eugene O'Neill's 1920 play of the same title. The film was made outside of the Hollywood studio system, financed with private money from neophyte wealthy producers in Gifford A. Cochran and John Krimsky. It was the only film produced by the two (Cochran stopped as a producer after a failed American rendition of The Threepenny Opera that same year) The film is based rather loosely on O'Neil's play, but adds an entire backstory before the actual play begins. It includes several new characters that do not appear in it (such as Jones' girlfriend, and a friendly priest who advises him to give up his evil ways). The film does provide what may be Robeson's greatest dramatic performance in a movie. In the film version, the opening shots are of an African ritual dance. Some critics assess the opening as representative of the "primitive" black world to which Brutus Jones will eventually revert. Some scholarly reviews reflect the relationship between the roots of the African-American church and the rhythmic chanting often seen in African religious practices.