Body and Soul
Oscar Micheaux · 1925
Oscar Micheaux’s 1925 silent drama Body and Soul stars Paul Robeson in his film debut as a criminal posing as a preacher in a Black Southern town. After two re-edits forced by New York censors, the surviving five-reel version tells a morally charged story of deception, violation, and a dream-framed reckoning. Though technically rudimentary and narratively fractured, it remains a landmark of African-American independent cinema — selected for the National Film Registry in 2019 for its cultural and historical significance.