Sommersby

This movie is one of several fictional adaptations of a true, famous legal case of imposture from sixteenth century France. The case involved a man named Martin Guerre who, having disappeared from his Basque village in 1548, suddenly reappeared eight years later. Despite his slightly changed appearance, he convinced his family, wife, and fellow villagers that he was indeed Martin Guerre; he and his wife had two more children and he sued a paternal uncle for the claim to his father's estate. That uncle became suspicious that this returned Martin Guerre was actually an impostor named Arnaud du Tilh, and he contrived a way to have him tried for imposture. This suspicion was ultimately confirmed when the actual Martin Guerre arrived in court during du Tilh's trial. Arnaud du Tilh was convicted and hanged in September 1560.

African American men held important positions, such as the judge portrayed by James Earl Jones, during the Reconstruction period after the Civil War.

Featured in Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1/The Cemetery Club/Sommersby/The Vanishing/Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993)