Sally Hemings: An American Scandal

This was a very well made movie. I admit that I'm a sap for old movies and old things and old times. I am also a big fanatic about interracial relationships and perhaps that's why I love this movie so much. I think it should have won some kind of award. All of my family watched it with me and they enjoyed it. I would recommend this movie to anyone.It was far better than what I expected.

I have to give the filmmakers credit for bringing to light a story that, for so long, historians rejected. We now know that Thomas Jefferson did indeed have a 30-year relationship with Sally Hemings, his slave (and wife's half-sister). The dialogue is bad, costuming not particularly accurate, and the actors pretty bad. All that can be overlooked. What is problematic to me is that the story, as presented here, is largely fictional.

First, the actress playing Hemings was entirely too, well, black, to be accurate. Sally Hemings was only 1/4 black and described as being "mighty near white" by Edmund Bacon, Jefferson's overseer. Change her clothes from servant/slave gear and one would likely have assumed she was white. We have no knowledge that Sally Hemings could write, let alone read and the movie has her reading and writing in English and French. Given that Jefferson encouraged education and learning music, we have no reason to assume she could do either. And while we know that she had the opportunity to stay behind in France and be free, there is no indication of the drama between herself, her brother, and Jefferson, nor did they flee paris due to an angry mob attacking his home. There is a disturbing scene in which Jefferson all but rapes Hemings in Paris, something we have zero documentation of (and frankly, would be WAY out of line for Jefferson's character.) Also, as the writers are trying to convince the audience that this is a love/companionate relationship, this is a godawful way to do it. We have no facts that prove that Sally was pregnant when she returned home from France (that story was largely concocted by Thomas Woodson, who claimed to be the long-lost first son of Jefferson and Hemings and has since been proven not to be ) Madison Hemings, in his memoirs, refers to a child that was born about 1790 but did not live. Paris is simply the place historians assume the relationship started because Madison Hemings said so in his memoirs. The entire story about Hemings and the slave Henry she was in love with and supposed to marry was a fabrication, as was the rape/whipping scene in the barn. These are two of my least favorite scenes in the movie because they were written purely to tug at teh viewers heartstrings and not to give them any sort of basis in reality. Finally, Andrews assumes a love relationship between Jefferson and Hemings. None of this is documented anywhere at all. After doing very extensive research on the subject, I personally believe that it was a companionate relationship, but one largely based on Jefferson's odd quirks and beliefs (see Death and Desire at Monticello by Andrew Burnstein).

I am all in favor of historical fiction - but real historical fiction takes the facts and makes a marginally fictionalized account, not just for entertainment value, but to gain the public's interest in the truth. This film has created a piece of fiction using real characters. That's just not the same as historical fiction. It appears that Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History (by Fawn Brodie) and Barbara Chase-Riboud's Sally Hemings: A Novel were both read by the writers and they skipped over the academic stuff entirely - a huge mistake.

I have watched this movie several times, in different years, and at different points in my eduation (I'm doing a Master's in American History) and my opinion of the film sinks lower every time I watch it. I support the movie's purpose, but not actual product. So, if you're looking for something entertaining AND accurate, try reading any of Annette Gordon-Wood's books, Death and Desire at Monticello, Jefferson's Notes on the State of Virginia (the sections that relate to slavery), and Joseph Ellis' Thomas Jefferson: The American Sphynx.

The smug postscript at the end of this mess of a movie makes brief mention of the 1998 DNA testing as a way of vindicating everything which has gone before. While the DNA tests (combined with a preponderance of historical evidence) makes it almost certain that Thomas Jefferson was the father of Eston Hemings, the tests are as important for what they disprove.

Among other things, one claim conclusively disproven was Jefferson's paternity of Thomas Woodson, which renders the entire Parisian chapter of this movie a complete fiction. It goes downhill from that point, with the narrative implying an extended correspondence between Jefferson & Hemings (there is no evidence that Sally Hemings was even literate), that Hemings was involved in some naiscent Underground Railroad (again, who knows?) and that Sally Hemings pops up unannounced at the White House one night (was it really that easy for a slave to travel from Charlottesville to Washington DC undetected?) to kiss & make up with "Thomas."

In between all of these historical improbabilities, we are subjected to pontificating of the first order. Nothing kills romance faster than speechifying. It ends up being a lose-lose situation: bad history combined with some deadly-dull romance. Ugh! Once it became clear where this was going (in the first 30 minutes, really), I should have quit while I was ahead.

Sally Hemings: An American Scandal draws you in immediately, and despite its length, holds your attention the entire time. The story transcends time, as it still holds a very relevant message today. The actors are all superb at presenting the varied sides of the dynamic characters. The audience grows to feel great empathy for Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings as they attempt to follow, and sometimes fight, their moral compasses. The aesthetic is also spectacular; meticulous attention was paid to detail in all of the sets and costume design.

For a made-for-TV-movie, it really is extraordinarily touching, as it makes the audience feel both inspired and ashamed of this fascinating part of American history.

IF YOU LIKE HISTORY AND FICTIONAL HISTORY YOU'LL LOVE THIS FILM. THE DETAIL TO PERIOD DRESS,DECOR AND LIFESTYLE IS WONDERFUL. NEVER KNEW THE STORY BEFORE AND IT WAS BOTH ENTERTAINING EMOTIONALLY SATISFYING. CHARACTERS ARE ENDEARING. ALSO MAKES YOU THINK.SAW IT FIRST ON TV AND HAD TO HAVE IT. WILL WATCH AGAIN AND AGAIN.