User reviews

This is a movie that reminds one of the saying: "Just when I thought I knew the answers, they changed the questions." A Caucasian man discovers late in life that his mother was actually Black, instead of the White woman who raised him. The history of slavery in the US, and the American version of apartheid in the south that followed the Civil War until the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and given the often "strained" relations that exist today; the subject matter is important and challenging. The result is that "A Family Thing" is a little gem. It speaks of bigotry, fear, the way things were and the way things are. Some White Americans will not be comfortable with this movie. This will be due to the bigoted nature of Mr. Duvall's character, metaphoric of White hatred towards Blacks. Then, his world crumbles when he discovers when all is not what it seems. Kudos to the producers(of whom Mr. Duvall was one) and the cast for a superb lesson in confronting hate, and how one special Aunt can heal wounds generations old.

A moving portrayal of the problems of racism - from both sides. The central characters a portrayed with incredible depth. Aunt T (Irma P. Hall) sums up the futility of racism - the films central theme - with the line "being blind does not give me the opportunity to judge a person by their color" (paraphrased). That being said, the film gets it's message across without preaching. An excellent film.

Irma P. Hall should have won the Oscar for this performance. I can't believe she wasn't even nominated. Duvall and Jones were also wonderful. An actor's treat!

I saw this movie back when it first came to video. I didn't know anything about it, but I put it in anyway and sat back with an open mind. What followed for the next two hours was a fascinating story of a bigoted, Mississipi tractor salesman who finds out that he is half black. While this might not sound like a big deal, let me explain a bit. I grew up down in the delta, near the location that this movie was filmed. It is a big deal down there. Unfortunately, the majority isn't quite as color-blind as they are in other parts of the united states and bigotry is still a pretty common thing. I'm sad to say that there is still a little bit of a barrier there, and if more people were to see this movie, then I'm sure things would be a little bit different.

You see, Robert Duvall plays a fellow (not the most open-minded of sorts) named Earl. In the opening, we get to see the events that make up a typical day for Earl (coffee drinking, shooting the breeze, and selling tractors). We also learn that Earl's Mom isn't in the best health as she passes away ten minutes into the film. She also leaves a note behind telling Earl that she isn't his real mother. His real mother was black and Earl is the result of an affair that costs his blood mother her life. Since Earl came out looking white, he was raised up like nothing ever happened.

I can see it as a shock. One, Earl appears to be in his mid-fifties. (that's quite a big shock to a guy in the prime of his life) two, he discovers that not only is he a b**tard child to a mother he never knew, he also has an older half-brother. After all of this, Earl needs to take a road-trip to get himself together and maybe meet the brother he never knew. What follows next is a journey (both physical and spiritual) that will show ol'Earl a thing or two about life and love.

Written by Tom Epperson and none other than Ol' Billy Bob Thornton himself, "A Family Thing" is one of the best feel good movies I have ever seen. I highly reccommend it. It's pretty rare that a movie comes along that is good enough to change one's life. This oughta be required viewing for high-school students. What a film. 10/10

Any movie about racial matters is bound to be difficult to tackle by anyone with scruples and integrity. For those who can deftly deal with the issue and make a quality movie: my hat's off to them. "A Family Thing" is a quality movie.

Earl Pilcher, Jr. (Robert Duvall), an old white Arkansan finds out that his real mother was not the old white woman who raised him and who just passed away, but a Black woman his father had an illicit relationship with. This news rocked his genteel Southern world. He grew up a proud white Southern man who referred to Blacks as N-words. Now he has to confront the fact that A.) his father was a philanderer and B.) he was half Black. He now wanted to find his real brother, Ray Murdock (James Earl Jones), thereby fulfilling his adopted mother's wish and satisfying his own curiosity

It wasn't a felicitous reunion between the two of them. There was some serious bitterness: Earl because he had to face the fact he wasn't white (or at least all white) and Ray because he saw Earl's father as the cause of his mother's death.

This was a well written and finely acted drama. Billy Bob Thornton's first screenplay, "One False Move," was a good debut. "A Family Thing" is even better.

You know the Oscar's are warped when movies like this aren't even nominated for an award. This is a really great movie, extremely well acted, perfectly cast, and wonderfully directed. An unusual story that will bring you to tears and reshape your heart. What a blessing to discover and enjoy! Thank you for making it. 7.4/10.

A Family Thing (1996) is a movie that I recently watched on Tubi. The storyline follows an older man whose mother tells him on her death bed that she's not his real mother and that his real mother is black and he has a black brother. Her dying wish is that he gets to know that side of the family so he sets off to the big city to accomplish just that. He realizes there isn't much love for his family in his new one and adjusting to the city won't be as easy as he thought it would be.

This movie is written by Billy Bob Thornton (Slingblade) and directed by Richard Pearce (Heartland). This picture stars Robert Duvall (The Godfather), James Earl Jones (Conan The Barbarian), Michael Beach (Aquaman), Regina Taylor (The Negotiator), David Keith (Behind Enemy Lines) and Irma P. Hall (The Ladykillers).

This cast is absolutely amazing and it was fun watching them play off each other. There's a fight scene between James Earl Jones and Robert Duvall that's hilarious. Hall delivers the aunt to perfection. There's also a great yodeling scene in here that had me cracking up. The storyline is a bit predictable but worthwhile due to the great characters and performances.

Overall, this is a slightly above average movie that I would score a 6-6.5/10 and recommend seeing once.

Everything about this movie touched my heart. Robert Duvall has to be the best actor who's ever tread the face of this earth. The way he 'sinks into' his character in this particular film is almost uncanny. The completely fresh and unexpected perspective from which the story is written took my breath away. I confess when I first saw this film I had no idea who Billy Bob Thorton(one of the co-writers) was - I just knew that this was one of the best movies I'd ever seen. Never at any time during this film do you get that feeling of 'I've seen this somewhere before' - and in this day and age that's almost unheard of. How come you haven't seen it yet?? Believe me it's worth the hunt.

Robert Duvall plays an aging Southerner who discovers he has a half-brother -- and worse, their mother was black! He journeys to Chicago to meet his half-brother (James Earl Jones), who is as shaken as he to discover their connection. The blind Aunt T. (Irma Hall), who lives with Jones, helps the two men sort out their differences. A familiar TV face, Michael Beach, plays Jones' grown son, who is dealing with personal problems and not exactly overjoyed to have a white man -- worse, a bona fide cracker -- in the family. Duvall walks away with this one. He is amazing. At one point, after having been carjacked and beaten and wandering off from Jones in anger and hurt feelings, he finds himself in a bar where he drunkenly invites himself to join a table of folks celebrating one of the ladies' birthdays. They're black, and his redneck, incorrect way of talking to them becomes painful to hear. He is that convincing. The last shot of the movie, which is absolutely precious, has Aunt T. walking away from the camera, headed for the market. Veteran movie and TV director Richard Pearce made this from a script cowritten by Billy Bob Thornton. A must-see.

What a pleasant surprise this was. I caught this one day on Showtime and really didn't give it much of a chance. But I was so wrong!! Powerful performance by Irma P. Hall (as Aunt T.), and Robert Duvall is at his best as well. Wonderfully acted and written, this has to be the best movie I have seen in a long while. Sure, the same old southern stereotypes are portrayed as well as the same for the inner-city black culture, with many being quite accurate. Some parts were a little over the top, like the birthday party in the bar that Earl crashes as a total stranger. But that being said, not a lot of negatives I can say about this movie.

Any movie with Robert Duvall and James Earl Jones in it is worth watching, and those two do not disappoint. However I thought Irma P. Hall stole the show. She is wonderful as the wise old owl who ends up being the only rational character in the film. It's a story about the evils of pride and prejudice, or more specifically, racism, and family. A complex mix, for sure, and the whole thing gets tied together a little too easily and quickly, for my taste. At the very least the story forces the viewer to examine their own attitudes toward race. The acting performances of Messrs. Jones and Duvall and Ms. Hall more than make up for a weak plot.

Tried to watch a wholesome movie with family. This one ruined by frequent, unnecessary cursing!!

HATE when PG/PG13 movies are ruined by speech and/or content.

A Family Thing is a drama about a Southen man (Duvall) who's mother reveals on her deathbed that he was not her child. Rather he was the result of a forced encounter between his father and the black help. In order to keep a promise Duvall sets off to find his half-brother (Earl-Jones).

Although the story seems to be about race - it's main theme is one of forgiveness and acceptance of others, with race being one of the barriers to break down.

All the characters have their own barriers to overcome - Duvall has to confront the fact that he is not white, Earl-Jones has to deal with his hatred of past events and Michael Beach has to come to terms with missing out on pro-football and the breakup of his marriage. Only the sagely aunt T. (Irma P. Hall) has the ability to accept everyone for whom they are - partly due to being blind "and not being able to judge folks on what they look like".

It's not an earth shattering piece of story telling and at times doesn't seem to have a consistent flow to it but it held my attention throughout and was actually quite rewarding.

It's all a bit tidy (in real life, nothing gets sorted this easy), but it definately makes you think.

I like Robert Duvall. He has made some great films over the years - A Civil Action, The Apostle, Tender Mercies, The Great Santini, Apocalypse Now and the Godfather, to name a few. Even his small films are great, like Assassination Tango.

This film, co-written by Billy Bob Thornton, is a gem that shines in a sea of excellence. The discovery that his real mother was black, was a shock to Earl Pilcher Jr. (Duvall), and he heads off from Arkansas to Chicago to find his brother Ray, played by James Earl Jones, another great actor known by most people as Darth Vader.

Ray already knows everything and is not anxious to revive old memories. The interaction between the two is mesmerizing and funny. It is what movies are all about.

Irma P. Hall (The Ladykillers, A Lesson Before Dying) is captivating as Aunt T. and has some of the best lines in the film. It is worth your time just to see her.

What a memorable experience!

Robert Duvall is great as the Southern man who is in for a surprise when his daddy dies. James Earl Jones matches him ever step of the way in magnificent interaction. But Irma P. Hall as the mother, really steals the film. If you haven't seen this, rent it. If it doesn't make you cry and laugh, you have no emotions.

Robert Duvall's father dies and he finds out that he has a long-lost brother - a black man (played by James Earl Jones). He treks to the big city in order to find his brother (against his wishes, as he's a prejudiced Southener) and soon finds himself stuck under the company of Jones and his rambunctious family.

This story isn't always as realistic as reality but it draws good allusions and parallels - I watched it very late one night expecting to fall asleep and, much to my surprise, I was completely entertained (and even touched) by the film's sweetness. It's an incredibly easy viewing - it touches on some deep racial issues but is never disturbing. It is a good family film with some strong morals and a rewarding finale that is a bit too simplistic, perhaps, but nevertheless uplifting and a nice reminder of many values many of us forget.

A worthwhile, extremely underrated experience - highly recommended.

4.5/5

I feel some of the best movies are those that depict human drama... Movies that 'could really happen' and this is one of them.

"A Family Thing" is a story about an aging southern white man who learns at his mother's deathbed that not only was he adopted, but that his birth mother was black. This Robert Duvall / James Earl Jones pairing is superb!

Aunt T (Irma P Hall) ties the movie together with her love for a dead sister's child deep enough to bridge any racial barrier. Her character uses homespun wisdom to enlighten 'the boys' with heartwarming honesty.

Scenes include arguments/wrestling matches just like two natural siblings would participate in.. and of course there are moments when Aunt T's wisdom coaxes two half brothers into being whole ones...

All in all A Good Watch....

It's pretty telling that people are still contributing reviews of this film 14 years after its release. It's hard to imagine anyone seeing it (or re-seeing it, as in my case) and not having a powerful emotional response. It's just that good.

The acting is spectacular - not just the two leads, who are both as good as you'd expect them to be, but also the supporting cast. Irma Hall, as Aunt T is joy to behold. She'll still be in your thoughts days later. There's really not a throwaway scene here. Everything rings true and serves the plot. The settings are real-looking, the dialog is natural...it's just a fine piece of movie making. Kudos to Billy Bob Thornton and those involved in getting this from the drawing board to the screen.

I'm guessing that kids won't like this as much as adults. Nothing blows up real good and there may be too much "wisdom" in the story. That's unfortunate because the moral center of this film is just where you'd want it to be, unless you're a die-hard retro racist. But forget morality. A FAMILY THING is just a hell of a fine piece of movie-making. As they used to say, "You'll laugh. You'll cry." They're both true. And you'll have a fine time in the process.

I love this movie very much. I wish more people saw it, and also that Irma P. Hall got a nomination, because she was fantastic and memorable. I thought everyone else in the cast was great, too, but Hall steals the movie from her more-famous co-stars.

This movie is one of my all time favorites. It felt so real. My family has a story like this. The acting by all the cast members were awesome. It feels so real when you are watching the flick. I would love to see it come to Broadway as a show something like that or as a play or whatever. Aunt Tiara, Aunt T was great!!!!!Love her. "Now don't go forgetting about your old Aunt T"!!!!!!!!!She rocks.......James Earl Jones, who by the way is one of the best actors ever; was interviewed on the Diane Rimms radio show ca. 2006 and he said it was one of his favorites also! ....... Now then ..........the birthing scene WOW it was one of my best parts-- so real powerful and sad. I cried like a baby. Loved the soundtrack also, great music these songs where just perfect! Robert Duval was perfect, love him also....JKE Brooklyn, NY 2/1/2007

What a great film! Robert and James Earl Jones were terrific. You believe everything in this film. The characters draw you right to them and you don't want the film to end.