Beloved/Their Eyes Were Watching God (1998) (2-Movie Collection)

BELOVED: Oprah Winfrey collaborated with director Jonathan Demme (SILENCE OF THE LAMBS) for this African American ghost story, set in 1870s Ohio. Demme adapted it from Toni Morrison's Pulitzer-winning book. Former slave Sethe (Winfrey) lives with her daughter, Denver (Kimberly Elise), in a house haunted by the malignant spirit of Sethe's long-dead infant. Sethe is also haunted by memories of her life of slavery at Sweet Home, the Kentucky plantation where she was raised. Enter Paul D. (Danny Glover), a fellow slave from Sweet Home, who stays at the house to start a new life with Sethe and Denver. Unfortunately their plans for happiness are foiled with the unexpected arrival of Beloved (Thandie Newton), a mysterious woman who may be the physical manifestation of Sethe's dead child. Horrifying secrets are revealed, leading to a shattering climax.

THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD: Academy Award-winning actress Halle Berry stars in this Oprah Winfrey-produced screen adaptation of the Zora Neale Hurston novel THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD. A staple of many school's curriculums, the book follows Janie Crawford, a beautiful African-American woman living in the 1920s, as she navigates her way through life and love in small-town America. Confronting societal ideas of how a woman (and even more, a black woman) should act, Janie (Berry) looks for fulfillment in the arms of a younger man following two disappointing marriages. While some viewers have criticized the film for leaving out some themes and details from the book, Oprah's screen adaptation definitely has some things to offer. Stunning cinematography, a star performance by Berry as the free-spirited Janie, and an undeniable chemistry between Berry and Michael Ealy (who plays Tea Cake) make this love story enjoyable for those familiar with or new to the story it is based on.