Film adaptations of Uncle Tom's Cabin


A number of film adaptations of Harriet Beecher Stowe's 1852 novel Uncle Tom's Cabin have been made over the years. Most of these movies were created during the silent film era. Since the 1930s, Hollywood studios have considered the story too controversial for another adaptation. Characters, themes and plot elements from Uncle Tom's Cabin have also influenced a large number of other movies, including The Birth of a Nation, while also inspiring numerous animated cartoons.

Silent film versions

Uncle Tom's Cabin was the most-filmed story of the silent film era with at least nine known adaptations between 1903 – 1927. This popularity was due to the continuing popularity of both the book and "Tom shows", meaning audiences were already familiar with the characters and the plot, making it easier for the film to be understood without spoken words.
A number of movies have utilized characters, plots, and themes from Uncle Tom's Cabin, including An Uncle Tom's Cabin Troupe ; the Duncan Sisters' Topsy and Eva ; "Uncle Tom's Uncle," a 1926 Our Gang episode which has the kids creating their own "Tom Show" and 1938's Everybody Sing. But for several decades after the end of the silent film era, the subject matter of Stowe's novel was judged too sensitive for further film interpretation. In 1946, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer considered filming the story, but ceased production after protests led by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
Edwin S. Porter's 1903 film production, Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Slavery Days, was based largely off of the theatrical productions of the same story common during that time. The movie lived up to racial stereotypes in wide circulation, and scenes were included to showcase slave dances. While African-American extras made appearances, white actors in blackface played the main slave characters. The film storyline strays widely from the plot of the novel, as exemplified by a scene completely independent of the novel depicting a steamboat race. The film assumes the audience is generally familiar with the plot due to the story's long running popularity.
Universal Studio's 1927 release of Uncle Tom’s Cabin was an epic film and a step forward for Stowe's work. While certain stigmatic similarities remained, such as scenes depicting outlandish slave dances and Topsy's flamboyant unruliness, this version was less outmoded in its characterization of slaves. More than earlier adaptations, this film took care to accurately follow the book, and some lines in the movie are direct quotes from the text. Integral characters omitted from previous films were brought to the forefront, such as George Harris. While the overall story remained intact, the writers did take some liberties. For instance, after escaping to freedom, Eliza and Harry are captured by the lawyer Marks and runaway slave tracker Tom Loker and sold down the river as opposed to receiving aid from kindly Quakers. Harry is separated from his mother when purchased by a nameless slave-owner before eventually being reunited with his father. Eliza is sold off to Simon Legree at the same auction as Uncle Tom. This alteration omits the entire subplot involving the Harris family's escape to Canada, weaving the story into one coherent plot. Another twist in the storyline occurs when Union soldiers on the march through the south liberate hundreds of slaves along the way, including the residents of Legree's plantation. The director moved the story forward historically to capitalize on the public's patriotic sympathies.
Socially, this film was more progressive than previous versions. Fewer characters were portrayed in blackface and less of an emphasis was put on exotic slave customs. Still, the majority of the screen time is dedicated to the white actors. African American actor James B. Lowe played the character Uncle Tom, but was on screen for less than 9 minutes and speaks less than a dozen lines.