Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967) Was *ANOTHER* Time - First Time Watching - Movie Reaction/Review

[@chrispatton8081]

In a way, Cam and Zay's review of this movie is a sign of the times. I don't really expect two Gen-Zrs born in the 21st Century to fully understand this movie, because it is so far removed from their experiences with it. I'll say its sort of a good thing. For them, this movie is truly another world. That people would object or even question two people falling in love that happen to be different races is truly foreign to them and for them to fully understand it they would instead of relaying it to their own experiences have to crack open encyclopedias and research online is actually good. I won't bash them for being ignorant of the historical context. They aren't Turner Classic Movies and they aren't the late Robert Osborne or Ben Mankiewicz. They're just two Gen-Zrs that like to watch films and you're getting their perspectives on it. Take it for what it is and be open to their reaction instead of tearing it down because they aren't well read on the subject.

[@Sirala6]

They seem to have no problem with 'Star Wars' which is far more fantastic than 1967 USA.

[@stevemattfis]

Funny how Cam & Zay learned nothing about assuming everyone before them were bigots but felt it necessary to pin an excuse for ageist behavior to the top of their comments section. Guys, Watch the movie again and listen. Prejudice hides in everyone who look for excuses.

[@pundrumtranambi5366]

I love that movie and I appreciate the fellow, who pointed it out to our two young and bright reactors 🙂 It is a thing I noticed a lot when watching reaction movies from younger people: Often they are having difficulties appreciating the historical context of what is happening in older films. And how could they not? They were not around back then. You can only hope that there was some teacher in school or maybe someone from their family, who cared enough to tell them what the country looked like 60 years ago. How can you even try to infer or understand what is happening today, if you do not know what happened before? Another detail worth mentioning is that Mr. Tracy died only two weeks after the production had finished. He gave everything to make this movie. It was that important to him.

[@garycollins7750]

I think a lot of people commented before watching the entire reaction because they clearly understood the film.

[@Sirala6]

@@garycollins7750 Yes they clearly speak English. But contextually?

[@janehollander3843]

Spencer Tracey died shortly after making this film. He was actually ill while shooting. He was a legendary actor for his time.

[@racheldrum1982]

35:05 is a painful moment. Everybody knew Spencer Tracy was dying. He was a favorite to win the first posthumous Oscar for this film, but Hepburn won instead.

[@jillwanlin9558]

The scene with the kids dancing was to show that the younger generations were ready for change.

[@Lethgar_Smith]

Some things are so natural to us today we miss the fact that those two kids dancing together was still a little shocking in 1967, believe it or not.

[@dionysiacosmos]

I was eight when this came out. I saw kids of different races dancing together on shows like American Bandstand ever since I can remember. Unless we were from hateful people, and I wasn't, there wasn't much racist pressure on poor subsistence level black or white folks in the rural South. They all worked so closely together and hate takes energy and time they didn't have. One of my mom's first memories is being inside a big cardboard box in the shade with the other babies too young to play on their own yet, while their mothers worked the fields. The box wasn't segregated. The only time my mom ever saw a thing regarding the klan, was one evening when she was 12. Three hooded horsemen chase her and her two cousins down the road aways. So the horses meant money, and scaring little white girls says waaay more about them than the poison they spout. The sixties and seventies were incredibly transformational times.

[@shilohauraable]

I'm 71 & very white. My sister's favorite baby doll was a black baby and I played with her daily after my sister grew out of dolls! Mom & Dad weren't racist but and had no problem with my friends of different races. But they did not believe the races should "mix". And neither did adults of other races, just like his dad in this movie!

[@im-gi2pg]

@@shilohauraable At a crucial time, the USA decided to be inclusive, and South Africa decided to separate the races. Guess who missed out in South Africa? They’re still backwards. I worked with a South African white woman in 2013 in Colorado who I thought was talking about animals until I realized she was talking about two black human beings. My sheriff brother-in-law was so prejudiced - until he fell in love with a mixed baby in the family. That’s all it takes.

[@a.b2963]

I could be mistaken but I also think it was to show the contrast between BW WM couples that dealt with less social pressure at the time compared with BM WW couples.

[@Dennisdman124]

The two speechs by Poitier and Tracy at the end are two of the greatest in movie history .

[@boomeister2]

Yes, they are. I wish reactors would cut somewhere else and leave those two speeches to play in their entirety.

[@GeoffRoderick]

Katherine Hepburn said she never watched their scene together. Tracy her real life lover died six weeks later in the kitchen of the home they shared. The first thing she did was call Tracy’s wife to let her know.

[@rodbacote8607]

This movie was made before the Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia that made interracial marriage legal and when this came out, it was a big hit thanks to the cast of Tracy and Hepburn and Poitier. It put the subject matter out in the public boldly and for the time was considered risky but it paid off. And that it still stands up today is a testament to the cast and writing.

[@Lethgar_Smith]

Yes, one of the reasons the parents have such a strong reaction is the fact that it was still illegal in some states. If they got lost on a cross country car trip they could end up in jail or worse.

[@RLucas3000]

@@Lethgar_Smithinterestingly, it was both ahead of its time (by some ) and already hopelessly dated (by others) who pointed to In The Heat of The Night, which actually won best picture, as actually progressive.

[@goldenstate66]

Interracial marriage was legalized in California in 1948.

[@joeyrossetti13]

The mother, Katharine Hepburn, has won more acting oscars then anyone, she won 4 oscars as best actress

[@Reclining_Spuds]

Including this film.

[@GaryCain-qf5vi]

I saw Katherine Hepburn on stage in San Diego in the 80's, she was Fantastic 😅😢 one of the Greats of Old Hollywood 😀 Peace✌️ Gary 😊

[@giannag4581]

Sidney Poitier was the First Black person to win an Oscar for Best Actor for Lilies of The Field. He is just as Iconic as Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn.

[@CG68810]

This is 1967!! This was the same year that the Supreme Court case Loving vs. Virginia overturned the ban of interracial marriage. This was not common back then for interracial couples. Many families would have disowned their child if this occurred, so this movie is quite progressive. It may seem not an issue for someone today, but back then, it was shocking.

[@stevemattfis]

As a gay man I watched as people put up a pretense of insight or compassion over the decades. People like to think it isn't an issue today but we still get bashed all over the US. GenZ believes it's not there because they aren't looking at any of it. I'm just surprised how Cam & Zay are doing a bigoted thing assuming things they assign to characters in the movie. They didn't once stop being caught up in assumptions and actually listen. That's what makes people less limited, listening. For anyone who doesn't know, Katherine and Spencer were lovers and as of the filming of this movie they both knew he was dying. When the closing scene of the movie was filmed Katherine was genuinely feeling the impending loss of Spencer. So the tears in her eyes are real.

[@sdhartley74]

I cry every time at the end of this movie, knowing that.

[@jtt6650]

I think their reaction was great. I’m sure you’re not free of assumptions either, so the fact that you mention their so-called “bigoted” assumptions, makes you look judgmental as well. People are way too hypersensitive these days. Many are looking to be offended and some live to be.

[@stevemattfis]

@@jtt6650 Assuming that Christine's parents were bigots the entire movie? Notice that?

[@jtt6650]

@@stevemattfis Christine’s parents?? 🤔 I think you’re confused. You must mean Joey’s parents. And no, I didn’t notice that at all. One of the main points of the movie is questioning the sincerity and conviction of the socially liberal main characters when the situation affects them personally. I think Cam and Zay went through a journey consistent with the intention and arc of the movie.

[@Serai3]

They're thinking with the viewpoint of their generation. Young people always have trouble taking the attitudes of their elders seriously.

[@StacyWalker-h2q]

This movie is a classic! Sidney Poitier was one of our most beloved actors of his time. His movies were so groundbreaking. #RIPSIDNEYPOITIER🙏🏾

[@FilmBuff54]

Sidney Poitier. His daughter’s name is spelled with a “y,” as in Sydney.

[@StacyWalker-h2q]

@@FilmBuff54 thanks. It was a typo.🙂

[@giannag4581]

My favorite was Lilies Of The Field.😊

[@isabelsilva62023]

Both sets of parents were thinking first and foremost of the huge problems an interracial couple would face in their daily lives. In 1969 Raquel Welch (the actress in the final Shawshank R. poster) made a movie with a black man (former football player Jim Brown) as her love interest, it was scandalous and could have ruined her career. Would like to suggest you guys watch Alan Parker's 1988 "Mississipi Burning", a true story with a stellar cast and Norman Jewison's "In the Heat of the Night" also with Sidney Poitier and a magnificent Rod Steiger, might help you understand the time.

[@boomeister2]

Katharine Hepburn (the mom) won the Oscar for Best Actress for this role. You have to understand that this movie was ground breaking. In 1967 this was absolutely shocking to most audiences! I remember when this came out in theatres. There were many people who, once learning of the plot, refused to see it. The fact that Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy and Sidney Poitier were all "A list" actors, I believe, drew most people in to see it. Afterall, Tracy and Hepburn had made 8 previous movies together that were hits and it had been 10 years since they had been seen together on the silver screen.

[@briancoughlin5772]

Believe it ir not, but interracial marriage was not legal in all of the United States until 1967.

[@DianeTaylor-m9c]

My understanding is that Spencer Tracy(the old man)passed away 2 weeks after this movie was finished. The other actors knew he was ill and that explains Katherine Hepburns tears. She knew she was watching him act for the last time.

[@faithnyou1732]

This was probably one of the most important films of the 20th century because it depicted an onscreen interracial relationship during the period of the Civil Rights movement, and important social changes were occurring. The film was one of a few films of the time to depict an interracial marriage in a positive light, as interracial marriage historically had been illegal in many U.S. states. The SCOTUS ruling that the ban on interracial marriage was unconstitutional was made just six months before this film was released. The ruling was the inspiration for the film. But arguably most important to really grasp the film is to know that even though interracial marriage was newly legal, it still was not easily accepted or safe. I've always especially enjoyed the dialogue between Spencer Tracy and the Monsignor. Thanks for choosing this film to react to! ✌💙✌

[@thomassmith1512]

The Maid Tilly was played by Isabel Sanford who went on to play Louise Jefferson on the The Jeffersons comedy tv series

[@Dej24601]

Sidney Poitier was a celebrated actor/director until his death in 2022, became a best-selling author, was a civil-rights activist and icon and chose every film role with precise care to be sure it reflected a character who he believed exhibited characteristics that did not fit negative stereotypes. He was the first Black actor to win the Best Actor Oscar and is considered a groundbreaking role model and mentor for black actors in the years following. President Obama awarded him the Medal of Freedom. Many of Poitier’s films were firsts to show a man who dealt with with racism and other social issues with dignity, strength, and courage and he displayed humor, integrity, humility and honesty.

[@michellestewart-1]

You have to view this movie in the eyes of 1967. It was very controversial when it was released. Watching the movie 'Loving' would help explain WHY the parents and Tilly reacted the way they did.

[@sdhartley74]

I really hope they read these comments and educate themselves on what they missed.

[@SteveBrownChampions2023]

Spencer Tracy was dying. He couldn't get insurance for the film in case he didn't make it. Katherine Hepburn and Stanley Kramer (the director) deferred their salary to cover him. |His monologue was completed under great emotional conditions. Katherine Hepburn's tears are genuine because they had been companions for several decades already and she knew he was playing his farewell performance. Tracy died two weeks after filming his final scene for this film and got a posthumous Oscar nomination for his performance. Katherine Hepburn never watched the film, If you watch it again through those eyes, you'll see a different film.

[@drea4195]

I think the point of the younger people "boogying out" in that one scene was to show that the younger generation was changing their attitudes toward race and were much more comfortable interacting as equals than their parents were.

[@stevemattfis]

No, it was about them not being old enough to take anything seriously. They were showing how life looks when people aren't thinking about anything other than the minute they are living in. The whole point of the story was to tell it from every point of view and that part was so short because they represented a superficial aspect of life. Look again at each person. all of them had a role to play for us the viewers to see life from other viewpoints

[@marysweeney7370]

THe young kids dancing were showing the youth movement and how society was changing.

[@Sirala6]

This review should go in the dictionary under "missing the point." The 1967 Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia ruled that anti-miscegenation (look up what that means, kids) laws were unconstitutional and ended the ban on interracial marriage in the United States. This film was made in 1967

[@claudiabailey5302]

Somehow everyone is like just because the law is changed. Hearts and minds follow. The abolition of slavery ended in 1865 was everyone instantly loving and friendly. If that was the case what was the point of Martin Luther King. Laws don't change minds it takes time and took time.

[@moul4519]

It's sad how immature these kids are. They are too old to act like this

[@stevemattfis]

I see that too. Neither Cam nor Zay heard a lot of important things like Spencer's characters job was a Court Judge. As a Judge making rush decisions is not an option and they assumed for the duration of the movie how he was only seeing from the view of a racist. The monolog at the end was not a "Payoff" or carrying the movie. It was using the views of everyone to see the complete picture.

[@RLucas3000]

@@moul4519 I think it’s their ‘brand’

[@moul4519]

@@RLucas3000 I do to. It's disrespectful. Such as life.

[@flowerlace]

Another AMAZING Poitier movie that everyone should see is A RAISIN IN THE SUN. Such a master class in acting and story telling.

[@lisaspikes4291]

And To Sir With Love and Lillies Of The Field!

[@im-gi2pg]

@@lisaspikes4291 Love those!!!💖

[@isabeljimenez6067]

I'm only halfway through with the reaction, and I'm kinda sad. I thought you guys would see the bigger picture. 1. They gave him impeccable "credentials" not because he needed to be the best of the best but because they wanted the focus to be on race. There were already too many other variables. Making him poor or struggling would have only complicated it more. 2. There were, like I said, already other factors to consider.... his age, the fact that he's a widower, the fact they only knew each other 10 days. If he had been white, there still would have been issues. The point is they needed to give their parents a mix of issues in order to give them a reason to protest in which they could hide their potential bigotry. 3. Understand the times. At this point, it was still ILLEGAL in many states for mixed marriages. It's not as simple as "I'm not racist so all good." I hope by the time I get to the end of this reaction, you guys will have gotten the point. This film was groundbreaking, and it's very disappointing to watch it go right over your heads. Shame.

[@88wildcat]

Actually it is a sign of progress that the main points of the film do go over their heads. It means we don't think about the signifance of the situation in the same ways we (by we I mean society in general) used to. Biracial relationships are everyday occurances now and it is very rare to see anyone make a public spectacle over one. Yes you can't always tell what people are thinking inside and certainly people who do not approve of them still exist but they have gone from being the rule to being the exception to the rule. Yes, it is a groundbreaking film, but that ground was broken almost sixty years ago and that ground is not the ground Cam and Zay walk on today. They have never experienced the culture that existed during the time of the film's release so the film is not going to register to them in the ways it registered to boomers and the oldest farts of Generation X (like me). It would be worse if they did view it in the same terms older generations do because that would mean nothing has changed in the last sixty years.

[@isabeljimenez6067]

@88wildcat 100% disagree. I wasn't alive for slavery but I can watch a film about it and grasp its historical value. I think they are bright young men. I guess I expected too much.

[@beatmet2355]

Yeah, they’re not quite mature enough to understand the context. They like to make jokes and carry on for a lot of their reactions, which is fine, but not for a movie like this.

[@ArtamStudio]

@@isabeljimenez6067 their lengthy post-watch comments were good. Did you stick around for them?

[@laurab68707]

This really is one of my favorite movies. Three of the top movie actors of the time. Spencer Tracy played Matt Drayton. He is an exceptional actor. You both have to please, please remember the time period of this movie. An interracial couple was extremely rare. And of course not accepted by a lot of people. I was surprised by your laughing so much. I think that the father was surprised by many things. They didn't even know she was dating anyone and the fact that they were going to be married soon and that her fiancé was black. I got the impression Matt was upset at his own reaction to the situation and didn't know how to handle the situation on such short notice and had to make a decision immediately, This is amazing acting by all characters. I absolutely love this movie!

[@oliverbrownlow5615]

A good observation about Matt (Spencer Tracy's character).

[@giannag4581]

Hello. Guys, don't pay attention to any of these negative comments. I am so impressed that you reacted to this classic movie. You didn't grow up during that time. You always have a smile or chuckle in most of your reactions. The only advice is with these older movies, look up the actors to find out about them. Just in this movie alone you have three that have won Best Actor and Actress Oscars. The Best actors in film history came from the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Again thanks for reacting.😊❤

[@GreggThompson-vb6mt]

Hey guys, you're reviewing this film in 2024. It would have been different if you were reviewing it in 1967.

[@carmenmonroe7]

Thank you.

[@emilsitka9537]

You two are so fortunate, now you can watch 1.) Sidney Poitier 2.) Spencer Tracy 3.) Katharine Hepburn 4.) Tracy and Hepburn together 5.) Stanley Kramer. There are so many directions to go.

[@philpaine3068]

The chemistry between Tracy and Hepburn is famous. They met in 1941 and remained utterly devoted to each other until Tracy's death in 1967. Their love for each other was legendary in Hollywood, where marriages and affairs are more often short and flimsy. However, they never married. When they spoke lines about relationships, the audience always knew that they were the real thing.

[@FilmBuff54]

That’s because Tracy stayed married to his wife while he was living with Hepburn. He was a great actor but he was an alcoholic, and not always very nice to Hepburn. He was Catholic, so didn’t ask his wife for a divorce.

[@philpaine3068]

@@FilmBuff54 Yes, it was the drinking that eventually killed him. However, Hepburn always maintained that she had no regrets. Human relationships are never simple, nor easily judged and described from the outside.

[@FilmBuff54]

@@philpaine3068 i agree about that, completely.

[@AguedaG]

In real life, the actress who plays Joanna was Katharine Hepburn's niece. Greetings from Spain.

[@StevenWilliams2560]

Maybe research the historical context of older classic films before diving into a watch. I enjoy blind reactions. But when a film is historically significant, and the reviewers have no context, it's annoying. Your generation has NO CLUE how radically different social views are now than they were 50-60 years ago. And the battles we fought so you could enjoy the freedoms you have be whatever pronouns you want to express. I have a son around your ages and he is continually shocked when I share what society was like when I was growing up in the 60s and 70s. I recall asking my mother in 1972, when I was 12 years old, what would she think if I married a Black girl. She said she thought we'd face a lot of difficulties, which was true. Interracial couples were murdered. So a parent was right to be concerned. I'm sure when I later came out as gay, she wished I'd just married a Black girl. :)

[@im-gi2pg]

@@StevenWilliams2560 lol. My daughter was gay at age 14, became trans in his late 30’s. With both of my kids, the only thing I could not have handled is if they came home and told me they were holy roller right-wing fascist Christians. That’s where I draw the line!🤣

[@bigpapajim45]

For a little context of the time. Interracial marriages were illegal in 17 states when this film was made. The landmark "Loving v, Virginia" civil rights case in 1967, eventually ended the banning of interracial marriages. Richard and Mildred Loving were a mixed race couple, who were jailed in Virginia in 1959 for violating Virginia's Racial Integrity Act of 1924. So, things were obviously quite a bit different back then. This film was clearly breaking new ground.

[@danmiller4064]

The hat that Spencer is wearing, is the same hat Henry Fonda wore in On Golden Pond. Katherine Hepburn wanted him to wear it. Check that movie out boys!!!

[@cflournoy1529]

I’ve seen this movie multiple times and never thought about the ice cream metaphor. It really makes a lot of sense. Thanks for that.

[@auntvesuvi3872]

Thanks for doing this classic, Cameron and Isaiah! 🍽

[@jacobskinner3522]

Poitier’s character was made to be such a highly qualified professional with a spotless record so that the only possible objection Joanna’s parents could have had to their relationship was the color of his skin. The filmmakers didn’t want the audience to have any other excuse to hide behind when watching the film.

[@DougRayPhillips]

You've already seen responses about the anti-miscegenation laws that were in place in several States. On top of that, when this film came out, movies were under the control of the Hays codes, which forbade showing interracial affection. (The code was not always enforced.)

[@oliverbrownlow5615]

Movie censorship under the Hays code, which had been in force since 1935, ended a year after this movie was released (in 1968), and was replaced by the first version of the movie rating system still in use today.

[@ThomasReeves-s7u]

@@oliverbrownlow5615 And I think the Hays Code had dropped the anti-miscegenation aspect in its final years. (1956 it seems.) The rule tended to apply to all interracial relationships. White/Asian marriage was not allowed in California until the late 1940s.

[@reyes12094]

You have to remember that interracial marriage was illegal in many states including Virginia where the Loving vs. Virginia case went all the way to the Supreme Court. The court's decision came out in 1967 just as the movie was being released. It was the perfect timing. We should all view it in the context of the fact that some Americans viewed interracial marriage as the end of their world, and some of the red states are still debating this question. Some Americans haven't gotten over the fact that the races can marry and mix to this very day.

[@bryanCJC2105]

I think the point of the two young people was that there was already a thawing of race relations among the young generations, in other words they symbolized the change that was already happening. It's hard to understand the severity and the legality of the racism in the US at the time. Spencer Tracy and Kathryn Hepburn were husband and wife for decades. Spencer Tracy was in the end stage of his life from a terminal illness and he died before the movie was released. The fact that he was able to deliver such a performance despite only being able to work for about an hour or so a day, is simply a testament to his devotion to the craft. In addition, to see Kathryn Hepburn's performance knowing that she knew that she was witnessing Spencer Tracy's last performance ever, is also a testament to her devotion to the craft.

[@lisathuban8969]

Tracy and Hepburn meant a lot to each other, but never married, btw. Tracy was Catholic, had a wife and kids, and didn't want to damage his reputation in the Catholic community with a divorce. That's one version of the truth, anyway. Another source who is not talked about a lot, but who knew both and many other celebrities, states both Tracy and Hepburn were closeted gays, and had their "affair" etc. as a front to hide their actual sexuality. Google "Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood" to find out more, I believe the documentary is on KZbin as well.

[@Serai3]

Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy (her parents) were together for decades, and had made some of the most famous films of the 40's and 50's. This was Spencer's last film, and he was ill during the making of it. He almost didn't finish, but he managed to get through it. So Katharine's tears during that last monologue were real - she knew she was watching his last moment of performance, that she was losing the man she had loved for most of her life. It's one of the most honest moments in cinema because it was completely real. Katharine went on work for nearly two more decades without her Spencer. One of the greatest love stories of Hollywood ending onscreen.

[@albertjimeno807]

...and 30's.

[@donnab8000]

Sidney Poitier was the Denzel Washington of that time. He starred in sooo many excellent films. The Defiant Ones, Raisin in the Sun, Lillies of the Field, In the Heat of the Night, To Sir with Love, Buck and the Preacher, Uptown Saturday Night, Let’s do it Again, A Piece of the Action, Paris Blues, A Patch of Blue, No Way Out and so many more. You should check out more of his work, both dramatic and comedic.

[@isabelsilva62023]

There might not have been a Denzel Washington without Sidney and I am very glad Denzel said exactly that to him in person.

[@giannag4581]

Sidney Poitier was The best of the best. Denzel looked up to Sidney.

[@yuuser]

Very good reaction! You guys are fortunate to be born in such times that you cannot comprehend how people were entrenched in racism to the point of not questioning it. That generation lived in a completely different reality of social acceptance. Today, we can't take pronouns for granted and basic gender/anatomy is being questioned. What's normal from one era to another deserves to be looked at with compassion, for not having walked in those people's shoes and faced the social pressures they faced. There is tremendous pressure to think a certain way, or be condemned. So this was a pioneering movie that helped society change for the better. ❤

[@brianmatthews1736]

Cam, and Zay...There are 4 great moments that speak to race relations, and love in general in this film. One...Katherine Hepburn's (the white mother) speech to her employee when she tells her to get permanently lost...this speaks to the fact the mother is going to refuse to allow anyone she associates with to be biased against her daughter for whom she chooses to marry because she loves them. Two...the black mother's point about remembering how it feels to have passion over whom you fall in love with regardless of whomever they are...Three...the very short interaction between the white father (Spencer Tracy), and the maid/cook informing her that the father disapproves of her attitude....Four... the white fathers monologue at the end which is of course the most impactful....The black male who loves the white daughter is played by Sidney Poitier...who was the greatest black actor of his time...he is remembered for another great movie of "Goodbye, Mr Chips" another classic movie you guys need to react to as well. Katherine Hepburn who played the white mom is the ONLY actress in history to have won FOUR Oscars up to, and including as of now in 2024...Spencer Tracy is Hollywood royalty as well. known for "Captain's Courageous" a famous coming of age movie. THE POINT of the young "hipster" white delivery kid, and the light skinned black young girl dancing with each other, etc.. is the fact that the generational difference of the old people being uncomfortable about race relations where the youth were beginning to not even notice the difference of race being any kind of an issue at all. It is all about the perceptions. The biggest point is THIS is why HISTORY must be accurately taught to the youth of today....this movie came out in the midst of the USA's civil rights movement. When many issues regarding race, women's rights, interracial marriage rights was being hammered out to give many disenfranchised people the rights they deserve under our constitution. Sadly, this film came out in 1967, and my community of the LGBT+ citizens hadn't even began their fight for rights, which of course didn't begin until the Stonewall riots in 1969 ( and for those Rupaul and Drag Race fans...Yes, it is accurate to say that drag queens were prominently involved in the Stonewall riots, considered to be at the forefront of the uprising alongside other marginalized groups like transgender women and homeless youth, with notable figures like Marsha P. Johnson being identified as a prominent drag queen participant in the event...another reason to say how important drag queens really are, and just how brave these "effeminate" people really are!) ...and the WORST part is that the vast majority of the public didn't really begin to sympathize with the LGBT+ community until after the movie "Philadelphia" with Tom Hanks, and Denzel Washington came out in 1993 after the AIDS pandemic crisis had hit which was nearly 30 (THIRTY!) years later! This, and the political atmosphere in our nation today illustrates just how ingrained negative things like bigotry, like racism, misogyny, and homophobia are instilled in many people STILL in our day and age of 2024...yes, things are MUCH better than in the past, but WE (and I mean EVERYONE) still have a LONG way to go in how we treat one another, and the attitudes we allow to affect our judgement.

[@oliverbrownlow5615]

Spencer Tracy also had the rare accomplishment of winning Oscars in two consecutive years, for CAPTAINS COURAGEOUS (1937) and BOYS TOWN (1938).

[@ArtamStudio]

Poitier's classic movie you're referring to is 1967's "To Sir With Love," not 1939's "Goodbye Mr Chips" which starred Oscar-winner Robert Donat. Twelve years before TSWL he was a student in another school-setting classic movie, "Blackboard Jungle."

[@simoliz03]

You need to watch ''To Sir, With Love!''

[@larryairgood4320]

"In The Heat of the Night" (1967) shows Sydney Poitier as a police detective in a very good film of its day, worth watching. Many of Poitier's best films were done earlier in time, in black and white, such as "The Defiant Ones" (1958) and especially "Lilies of the Field" (1963). Also notable, Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy were a couple for about 26 years, making 9 movies together along the way, their best being "Woman of the Year" (1942) and "Adam's Rib" (1949) and "Pat and Mike", (1952), all romantic comedies on black and white film. But all of that was and is good entertainment.

[@FilmBuff54]

Sidney not Sydney.

[@boomeister2]

Sidney Poitier has a daughter named Sydney

[@TurbidTG1]

You should watch In The Heat Of The Night!

[@kevinehle6637]

LOL...while other channels are watching Tucker & Dale vs. Evil or Dusk til Dawn for this time of year, Cam and Zay go a very different direction. 😂😂

[@SUZABELLA34]

OMG Thank you for watching this movie!! I love it soooo much! I have 2 bi racial sons and 2 white sons.. All biologically mine. I had a rough go of it with my black husband in the 80's, so I am all too familiar with racism. Now, I have been married to my white hubby for 22 years and he has loved my older boys as if they were his own. We are people first.. We all have feelings, we all bleed red and want the best for our kids. Stop racism now!

[@jimclark286]

i think you guys might have overlooked the severity and importance of this topic for the time. you have to look at this through the lense of the civil rights movement. the conversation between john and his father mentioned the severity of it. it was still illegal in 17 states for blacks and whites to marry. i get the feeling from your reaction that your thinking that it just wasnt a cool thing to do back in the day. this movie potrays the time and beliefs of the time very well.

[@larryhinson947]

The woman who played the daughter was actually in real life the niece of the woman who played her mother. Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn, the white parents, lived together fir years . They could not marry in real life because Tracy would not divorce his wife because of the Catholic rules. When you see tears in Katherine Hepburn eyes were real because she knew he was dying of cancer. He died before the Oscars...Oscar's.... he did get the best actor award for his performance.

[@oliverbrownlow5615]

Maybe he should have won, but Spencer Tracy was only nominated for GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER. He won for CAPTAINS COURAGEOUS (1937) and BOYS TOWN (1938).

[@hannejeppesen1809]

You cut out the most important sentence Sidney Poitier said to his dad. You think yourself as a black man, I think of myself as a man".

[@GaryCain-qf5vi]

I' m Glad you reacted to this Classic, the actors some of the best of old Hollywood 👌, it's good to keep the topic in discussion so we don't forget how much we've changed, and still need to keep fighting for what's right! Especially with an upcoming election that could change alot of what we fought for. ✌️Peace ☮️ and Love❤ your 70 year old forever Young Hippie Gary😊 Isabel Sanford (Tillie) Wife on the sitcom "The Jeffersons" the fact that you hated her is a credit to her great acting ability, I met her at a Christmas Party in the 80's she was nothing like Tillie she was very kind and fun loving.😂 remember when choosing movies for Reaction some of the Oldies are the Goodies😅

[@lindataggart9076]

Some of the most amazing actors in this movie,, the golden age of movies.. the best

[@paintsplattered17]

Not a single person bitching about this reaction watched the last 20 minutes of the video. I love this channel because they are some of the most consistently cerebral reactors I've found. They clearly have fun with what they watch and do exactly what a reactor is supposed to; react out loud and in the moment to what they're seeing. Then they wrap up with an incredibly thoughtful commentary after they've had the complete viewing experience. This video is no different.

[@RLucas3000]

So you know, Spencer Tracey, when he shot his final scene, the monologue at the end,was ten days away from his death. He was so sick when the movie started, no company would give the film insurance, so he and Katherine Hepburn put their salaries up as protection for the studio. The mom won best actress for this movie, for his reaction to his monologue, as she the man she loved in real life would soon be gone forever (and still blew everyone in the room away with his acting). Rod Steiger won best actor over him, he played the racist white sheriff in ‘In The Heat of the Night’, which also won best picture, and also starred Sydney Poitier (Dr. Prentiss here.) Neither the mom or dad were racist, they were just in shock. The mom just came out of it quicker. A modern equivalent would be one of you, straight up to this point, suddenly falling in love with a guy and coming home and telling your parents you were getting married that week, and this happened in 2010, when gay marriage was still illegal in a lot of states. Even if your parents were liberal, they’d still be in shock, right?

[@boomeister2]

You should react to "To Sir With Love" starring Sidney Poitier. Another amazing film.

[@giannag4581]

I prefer Lilies Of The Field. He won Best Actor for that and made history for being the first Black person to win Best Actor.😊

[@oliverbrownlow5615]

​@@giannag4581 James Baskett, however, the star of Disney's SONG OF THE SOUTH (1946), was the first black man to receive an Academy Award (a non-competitive "special Oscar," like the one Judy Garland was given for her performance in THE WIZARD OF OZ).

[@lindataggart9076]

Bravo you two for watching this amazing movie.

[@johnmoreland6089]

Cam, your criticism about feeling the messages over the love between characters was a common criticism of the film at the time. The producer, Stanley Kramer, was famous for making what were then called "Message Movies," where character development often was given secondary consideration to the political or social message behind the film. Characters often represented more of a POV than full blooded human being. This film probably had the most developed characters of any Kramer film, but still secondary to the message. A very astutue observation on your part. As far as the delivery boy scene, as others have pointed out, it represented how the teenage generation were already moving on from the social constraints of the racially divided society, compared to the older generations in the house. But why it feels particularly weird today is because it's wrapped in a hackneyed "comedic" trope of the time on tv shows or movies aimed at the then adult audience, which was to lightly mock the teenagers of the day. All the adults in the audience could roll their eyes and shake their head at "the teenybopppers dancing wildly to their rock and roll on their transistor radios." It was aleady a tired old punchline on just about every tv sitcom and every comedy movie by 1967. It really doesn't translate to modern audiences because there is no equivalent trope today.

[@oliverbrownlow5615]

I thought the delivery boy was a hep cat.

[@Lilmovieman27]

A great year for movies, 1967...and Tracy passed away like two weeks after shooting his last scene

[@bethdealmeida6789]

If you're going to watch Sidney Poitier, please, please react to "Lilies of the Field" - so underrated, if not, forgotten masterpiece! Thanks!

[@hobbievk5119]

Sidney Poitier made some amazing films during these years. You should definitely check out In the Heat of the Night (1967), and The Defiant Ones (1958). Both films won Oscars although, unfortunately, none for Poitier.

[@jannathompson2262]

Excellent films❤❤❤❤❤😊

[@leehallam9365]

I think there is more to it than racism, or rather the parent's racism. It is about the world they are in and what they are letting themselves in for, any parent would be concerned, would want to stop their child getting hurt. Also they are being ridiculously unfair in those circumstances dropping it on them in such a hurry.

[@angelagraves865]

This movie has never been so funny. I wouldn't have thought this, of all movies, would be one of my favorite of your reactions. And just because you saw the funny side of things doesn't mean that you didn't get the situation, it's just a nice gauge of how things have been changing in the right direction in the past 60 years. Cheers! ✌🏽🤘🏽🖖🏽

[@royveteto4134]

i have never had a problem with inter racial couples but i was stunned at how quickly the couple in this movie decided to get married after how soon they met

[@YvonneBeard-zh5uw]

If you liked this one you're gonna love WATERMELON MAN....when i tell you you ain't ready...😂

[@JD_ATX]

I adore this film ... Katherine Houghton (Joey) is Kate Hepburn's real-life niece which is why they pass so well as mother and daughter in this film.

[@hannejeppesen1809]

Don't judge this movie by todays standards, this was made in 1967. Different times.

[@shilohauraable]

I went to see this the night after my grandmother's funeral. It was great stress relief & the real border between my generation that of our parents'. My parents were not racist, but did not believe the races should mix. I was 14 and saw no problem with it. It's a great movie! ❤️ I think it's lost on you young ones what the situation was during this time. It was the time of MLK & the violent Civil Rights movement. There were people who would kill you if you married another race - or even had a friend with another race. This couple, and their children, would be denied entry into many businesses. Their kids would have a terrible time in many schools. This was the time the KKK was created. Although many were gradually accepting mutual bus seating, restaurant seating & mixed school attendance, many others were absolutely not! This was the time that MLK, JFK and RFK were assassinated! It was a very dangerous time. Their parents would've had great reason for concern. Then, as my generation came to adulthood, it wasn't thought to be a big deal & all races mixed well in my rural, midwest high school and college! In fact, although mixed relationships are more accepted today, actual interaction between individuals of many races seemed to be better in the 70s and 80s than they are now! Not sure why. But I'm glad I grew up when I did because I was blessed with friends from all races that I'm still "family" close to today! 💖 I'm 71.

[@chefskiss6179]

They certainly don't make 'em like Tracy and Hepburn anymore that's for sure. SO glad you finally got this ole gem, that was a fun watchalong with you two... now can we get to that other 'who's coming to dinner' flick? Peter Seller's in The Party? Pretty please? 😂

[@dianebrown8046]

❤OMG 65yr old here again just finished watching whole reaction...made comment before (7minutes in) LONG Time subscriber I think this is one of the best reactions I've ever seen you do❤❤❤ Rock On Cam and Zay❤❤❤PS..I had moment like this movie..was in college (I'm 4ft11 white woman) was dating guy (black) from Jamaica..his sisters came to visit..didn't know I was white...Long Story short..they told parents...we broke up..😢😢

[@im-gi2pg]

@@dianebrown8046 In 1968, I had a crush on a fellow student whose older brother was already a basketball 🏀 rising star. Their ambitious parents were laser-focused on both their son’s scholarship and sports careers and a white girlfriend was NOT to be considered. They had made it real clear to their sons not to consider it. It was a new experience for me to be rejected sight unseen by black parents for my white skin color.

[@donny1960]

The father's speech at the end was pure love expressed for his wife. The love was there. You just were making crude jokes about it. The love Tilly had for the daughter was there. The love of the mother toward the daughter was there. She was crying when saying she never saw her daughter happier. That is love. So, love was everywhere. You just missed it.

[@janehollander3843]

Well said! I do commend them though for taking the time to react and educate themselves about film history. Some of it just can't resonate unless you're experiencing it at the time it was made. Cam and Zay compliment each other very well and I'm hopeful they'll continue to evolve.

[@denniscollett1038]

Potier an American acting treasure. Check out" To Sir with Love".

[@sdhartley74]

I was really excited to see this... but your laughter and ridicule of this classic just hurt my heart. I hope you'll rewatch this with seriousness and recognize the beautiful message. I expected more from you guys, you are better than this.

[@Beckywyse]

Born in 64... I hated this mindset against the color of human skin. Still do. 😢 31:29

[@patriciafromsite6652]

Remember this was the 60's. Things were just starting to turn around with racial issues. This was very progressive for a film at that time.

[@savage_skirt5386]

The actress playing Tillie would go on to star in The Jeffersons

[@stevenwoodward5923]

The same year this movie came out the Supreme Court ruled in the court case Loving v. Virginia. The court ruled in a unanimous decisions and struck down state laws banning marriage between individuals of different races, holding that these anti-miscegenation statutes violated both the Due Process and the Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment.

[@cookiesforelvis7703]

About John being basically perfect (great education, handsome etc) the movie doesn't really work without his character being written that way. One of the main points of the movie is to ask the liberals of that day what they would do if their child brought home someone of a different race. John has to be written where the only objection the while liberal parents could have is his race. While they intellectually understand that racism is wrong (and raised their daughter to understand that), they have to confront the fact that they still hold prejudice thoughts/feelings.

[@oliviarogers2808]

They don't really

[@christhompson6010]

You guys just witnessed one of the most influential actors of all time in sidney poitier. watching this movie in context during what was going at the time made this a very risky move by him. you had lynchings civil rights protest and assassinations going on throughout the country.add to that the Malcolm X movement segregated schools. this county was about as divided as it could get between the races. MLK's assassination had this country at a tipping point. Looking at it now from the perspective of the 21 century it's a sweet love story. then it was like mixing oil and water. marrying into a race the burned crosses on you lawns and lynched your kids. that's how things were even into the early 70,s. now we have a mixed president but it wasn't that long ago this stuff was going on

[@joanward1578]

Highly recommend, Imitation of Life...a classic

[@im-gi2pg]

To Sir with Love, the Lillies of the Field, and probably the best is A Patch of Blue. Sidney Poitier’s autobiography is worth reading!

[@tif8266]

Have you seen Imitation of Life? (1959) it's another one that handles race/race relations in America.

[@sdhartley74]

Another tearjerker for sure

[@albertjimeno807]

I actually much prefer the 1934 version of Imitation of Life.

[@Yourstrulyava]

Your channel always gives me movie ideas... you watch some movies I've also never seen, it's a fun change 🙂

[@mcfmcf4038]

this is the video where you two officially became an old married couple lol.

[@magicalmiller]

I am so happy that your generation has dudes like you. Thank you for being real and not being afraid to let free speech be a priority for you.

[@joel65913]

As others have said when this was in production interracial marriage was illegal in many states. Loving vs. Virginia, which struck down that law, was handed down less than a month after the film wrapped but before its premiere, so the premise was much more controversial than it seems to modern eyes. This was the final teaming (of 9) for Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn who were also life partners as well as costars, though Tracy had a wife from who he was separated (she was Catholic so refused to divorce him) throughout their long (over 20 years) relationship. Tracy was gravelly ill at the time, to the point that both Kate and the director Stanley Kramer put up their salaries as surety to convince the studio to cast him since they felt he was uninsurable and not certain he would live to the end of filming. It was a struggle with Hepburn determining how long he worked each day to conserve his energy. That moving speech he gives at the end was his final piece of the film to be shot and the tears Kate is shedding are real. Tracy died less than 3 weeks after the film wrapped production. I agree that making Sidney Poitier’s character a near saint is a flaw. He’s almost too good to be true and it makes any objections seem crazy. Still, it is a solid film with fine work by all. Both Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy had amazing careers (both started in films in the early 30’s and Kate remained an active performer until the early 90’s) outside of their work with each other and have many films worth seeking out. Her follow up to this “The Lion in Winter” is an awesome film. One last thing, the actress playing Tracy & Hepburn’s daughter is Kate Hepburn’s real-life niece, Katharine Houghton who was indeed named after her.

[@sfkeepay]

Lots of at least partially critical comments regarding your relative cluelessness, so allow me to submit a brief in partial defense. For you guys, the decontextualized absurdity of the drama in the film is self-evident, and that’s very encouraging. Normally I’d never say this, but a bit of temporary historical obliviousness is, here, overbalanced by deeply felt acceptance. I only wish the film was entirely irrelevant to the present, but obviously, far worse flavors of stupidity endure.

[@jamesholder7842]

Fantastic work guys. This was such a groundbreaking film at the time and it has aged well. It still references important themes and is loaded with an amazing cast. Thank you for exploring and sincerely discussing these films.

[@zatoichi101]

Good for you both to watch a movie from a different time, made during a period of different sensibilities. At the time, it was a ground-breaking movie. Good for you to watch this and share your honest reactions.

[@Dej24601]

Tracy and Hepburn were considered some of the greatest actors of Hollywood and accepted roles in this film because they believed it addressed important issues.

[@FilmBuff54]

This was Spencer Tracy’s final movie, because he was very ill when it was being made. If you like his performance, I think you would really enjoy him in “Bad Day at Black Rock,” which is a film noir/western which also deals with racism, and “Inherit the Wind,” which is.a filmed play a based on the Scopes Monkey Trial, where he plays a fictional version of Clarence Darrow, who defended a teacher who was arrested for teaching evolution in the public schools.

[@oliverbrownlow5615]

I'd love to see them react to INHERIT THE WIND (1960).

[@monica11760]

This is such a great movie that has a character portraying every possible feeling someone could have about a mixed race couple. It really wasn't that long ago, and it may be hard for you both to realize these feelings were real and they were strong. They still are in some parts of the world even today.

[@YvonneBeard-zh5uw]

These little puns are taking me out😂😂😂😂

[@alanyoung7615]

You should watch the film Guess Who starring Bernie Mac its a take of this film

[@Peter-f2m]

And… the dad Spencer Tracey was sick and dying This was his last movie… died a few weeks after filming. It’s an extremely poignant and heartfelt performance by everybody… all working towards breaking and changing racial norms of the era. Many things that you found amusing were absolutely scandalous at the time. In the south being seen with a white woman would get you hung from a tree by your neck. The humanity of all the characters as they confront and process their own human prejudices is extraordinarily good. Worth a good watch 20 years from now as you grow and mature and find yourself in different phases of your own life.

[@Peter-f2m]

Edit: your discussion afterwards was phenomenal. You guys really did a great job (Just a suggestion.. have a classic movie rewatch month or week every year They always get better and people will appreciate you experiencing that. Casablanca for example. )

[@SueProst]

Not weeks 9 to 10 days

[@maryhanrahan]

Legendary Spencer Tracey died just after this movie - also Spencer and Catherine Hepburn (the mum) were actually in a relationship for many years and Hepburn said he was the love of her life - she died less than 20 years ago - She was also a legend and the black son was played by Sidney Poitier only died 2022 - he was an awesome actor - you should watch 'In the heat of the night' also a 60's film that Poitier starred in and was also pretty ground breaking for that time dealing with racial issues.

[@lindapowers8592]

The film was nominated for 10 Academy Awards, including best picture, and won two: best actress for Katharine Hepburn and best writing. Loved your reactions. When this film was made it was still illegal in multiple states for them to be married. Physical PDA was not acceptable between the interracial actors. The story was told the way they could at the time. Not sure the first interracial kiss on camera had taken place. People lived in a more patriarchal society and role at in the 60’s too.

[@dudieb]

Spencer Tracey was ill at the time this was made and they were not able to insure him so Katherine Hepburn and Sidney Poitier both put up some of their salary so he could do this movie. Spencer Tracey’s monologue was even more emotional because they were not sure if his health would hold out for him to finish the film. Also, he and Katherine Hepburn had been in a relationship for years and were very close. Also the actress who played Joey, Katherine Houghton, was Katherine Hepburns Niece. I know that this seems a very far fetched concept to people of your generation, and thank goodness it is, but during the sixties this fight was still bring fought all over this country. Lets hope we don’t regress and end up loosing what gains we have made.

[@ThomasReeves-s7u]

When I watched it the problem I had was Sidney Poitier's character seemed so remarkable while she was...pleasant? Like I felt like he could do better. But I did consider that's because I was born in 1977. But I read something that indicated it faced that criticism at the time. That people complained Poitier's character was a bit too successful and educated, much more so than her, and that it was maybe risking a vibe of "If a Black man is amazing he can marry a somewhat pretty white lady who is maybe not too bright." (She lived in the 1960s. No matter how her parents raised her she shouldn't have been this clueless about the way America was then.) The creators intent though was to eliminate objections other than race. (That said the priest indicates she's Catholic and you're not really supposed to do "quickie marriages" in Catholicism with the only "quickie Catholic marriages" I know being where the woman's pregnant.) Still some things about the world then I think might be hard for young people to understand. Interracial marriage being illegal didn't just mean it was unrecognized. In many states it meant you could be fined or even thrown in jail. California did not allow interracial marriage until 1947, though I don't see punishments, so both of them would have been alive when it wasn't recognized in that state. And as late as 1965 Indiana, to pick a non-Southern state, law stated "No person having one-eighth part or more of negro blood shall be permitted to marry any white woman of this state, nor shall any white man be permitted to marry any negro woman or any woman having one-eighth part or more negro blood, and every person who shall knowingly marry in violation of the provisions of this section shall, on conviction, be fined not less than one hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars, and imprisoned in the state prison not less than one year nor more than ten years." And even in states where it was legal you could be facing actual violence as late as, going by my memory, the 1980s. Particularly if the husband was the one who was Black as there was a notion that white women had to be especially "protected."

[@luisalbertocalla6649]

Great reaction! A wonderful classic of cinema, with masterful performances and several Academy Award nominations. Unforgettable! Greetings from Tandil, Argentina! 🇦🇷🤗

[@dalus8073]

Hey guy, I'm from the generation this movie was made, so I get all the race stuff going on that just doesn't land today. And it's very amusing to watch guys from the current generation (you!) critique from today's perspectives. Gives me hope for the future.