As the society changes...

Guess Who's Coming To Dinner (1967)
During our trip to Taman Negara in 1983, I remember somebody saying, "Guess who's coming for dinner?" Well it was sambar deer - a timid occasional visitor to the chalets in the park. During their visit too, someone will say "Somebody's here!" (Sounds like sambar deer).
I remember this movie was shown in Penang's Capitol cinema for a long time. 45 years later, I get the chance to watch it.

At a time when civil liberation was taking shape and it was criminal in some states for couples of different races to be seen together, this film was released with surprisingly warm reception even in the southern states. I bet nobody would have thought then that a black leader would actually be heading their country some 40 years later!
This film is set in the form of stage presentation narrating the events that happened over half a day.

Sambar Deer (Somebody here)

Joey Drayton (Katharine Houghton), a product of a liberal minded newspaper editor (Spencer Tracy) and his wife (Katherine Hepburn) arrives happily with a black doctor (Sidney Poitier), whom she met 10 days previously, that they were getting married. What she gets, instead of blessings, is raised eyebrows from all around. Starting with Tillie, Joey's black live-in maid who raised her from her childhood who thinks that the black boy is up to no good, her father is also too shocked to accept the whole news as it was too soon and too quick. The couple had earlier decided to make a quick stopover before setting off for wedding, with her parents' blessings (at least that is what Dr John Prentiss was hoping for). The mother, the hopeless romantic, just agrees along.

In a twist of events, John's parents also decide to join in the dinner, but not before
being told by their son that their soon to be daughter-in-law is white.
Mr and Mrs Prentiss are initially shocked with their son's choice. After coming to terms later, Mrs Prentiss tries to knock some sense into Mr Drayton. In midst of all this is a Catholic pastor who did not do much to unite the families but rather enjoy his large helping of his pre-dinner shot of scotch!
The finale of the film is when Mr Drayton makes a long lengthy and emotional speech laying out the obstacles that the couple were going to go through but gave his seal of approval that the couple wanted. This speech turned out Tracy's last movie dialogue as he died soon after the filming before the film was released. He had been sick with myriad of medical conditions after a good life but was invited to act with his mistress, Hepburn, as his screen wife.

Capitol cinema, Penang

Memorable quote:

Tillie (The black live-in maid who hates the idea and is suspicious of a fellow black man getting to marry the little white girl that she nurtured. In fact, in the whole story, she was the one most vocal in displaying her dissatisfaction. The others were more civil!): Civil rights is one thing. This here is somethin' else.

The touching dialogue between Dr Prentiss and his father.Relevant generations after generations...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCAaEbCDovQ&t=1h24m10s