beloved ( m ) . ( touchstone/buena vista international ) director : jonathan demme stars : oprah winfrey , danny glover , thandie newton , kimberly elise , lisa gay hamilton , irma p hall , albert hall , beah richards , kessia kordelle , jude ciccolella , jason robards , tracey walter running time : 172 minutes . in hindsight , maybe it wasn't such a good idea for oprah winfrey to give up her day job . america's queen of daytime television talk shows has quit the small screen to establish a new career in movies with beloved , her first feature film since the memorable the colour purple 14 years ago . based on toni morrison's acclaimed 1987 novel , beloved has been something of a labour of love for winfrey , who has nurtured the project for over a decade . however , this disappointing film should have been much more powerful , especially given the time and effort spent on refining and developing it . the film tells of the hardships confronting former slaves as they try to come to terms with their freedom and the costly legacy of their recent blood soaked past . this is rich territory we have explored before , most notably in the epic tv series roots . beloved is an unsatisfactory and occasionally unfathomable mix of history , family drama , horror , mysticism , and unexplained magic that fails to leave such a lasting impression . set in the mid-1870's , the film centres around sethe ( winfrey ) , a former slave haunted by her past and the soul destroying sacrifices she had to make to ensure her own survival . sethe lives in the old family house on the outskirts of cincinnati and is slowly coming to terms with her independence . she is shunned by most of the townsfolk , for reasons that we only slowly learn about . the scars of the past also affect her daughter denver ( kimberly elise , from set it off , etc ) , who is reluctant to leave the house . the healing process begins with the arrival of two very different people . paul d ( danny glover ) is a former slave and family friend , who re-enters sethe's life after 18 years . he brings happiness and love back into sethe's life , until even her unassuaged guilt proves too much . the other catalyst is beloved ( thandie newton , from flirting , etc ) , a scarred and twisted young woman of mysterious origins , whose presence in the house becomes both threatening and unnerving . this is the first film from oscar winning director jonathan demme ( the silence of the lambs , etc ) since 1993's philadelphia . although he handles the material with restraint , except for a couple of notable exceptions , his direction seems to lack a strong focus . it's almost as if he lacks the same depth of passion and commitment to the story as winfrey and most of the production crew . three writers , including richard lagravenese ( the bridges of madison county , etc ) and adam brooks ( practical magic , etc ) have shaped this multi-layered story , but there are still a number of problems with the narrative structure . despite its lengthy running time , there is a suggestion that many characters and scenes were sacrificed on the cutting room floor . veterans jason robards and tracey walter ( who both appeared in demme's philadelphia ) are wasted in small , wordless roles . brief , sepia toned flashbacks provides glimpses of some of the horrors endured by the slaves in america's south before the civil war . tak fujimoto's cinematography is superb , and rachel portman's score , which draws heavily on afro-american chants , is also evocative . winfrey runs the gamut of emotions here , and her complex performance provides the film with much of its emotional depth . glover is understated in a role that never really goes anywhere . newton is superb , and delivers an emotionally and physically demanding performance as the childlike beloved . despite its rich source material and its fine production credentials , beloved is a huge disappointment , and doesn't really endear itself to audiences . 
