| | | Based on the Best-Selling Novel by Bishop T.D. Jakes.
Features: DVD, Widescreen, Pan and Scan (TV Format), English, Spanish, Subtitled
While incarcerated, Michelle sends Bishop Jakes (Bishop T.D. Jakes) a letter requesting a visit. Jakes agrees to meet Michelle and soon uncovers the painful history that led to her personal demise. The Special Edition includes never before seen footage, deleted scenes, and related sermon material.
"Startlingly raw and honest, playing at times like one of those blistering Donald Goines blaxploitation pulp novels, only with Jesus" David Chute, LA Weekly
"This is one faith-based film that pulls no punches." Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times
Editor's Note
Michael Schultz, the director of such influential films as COOLEY HIGH, CAR WASH, THE LAST DRAGON, and KRUSH GROOVE, returns to the big screen for the first time in more than a decade with the career-redefining WOMAN, THOU ART LOOSED. Based on the work and writings of Bishop T.D. Jakes, this powerful drama stars Kimberly Elise as Michelle Jordan, a young woman on death row explaining her life to Jakes, who plays himself in the film. Schultz cuts between the past and the present as Michelle relates the abuse she suffered at the hands of Reggie (Clifton Powell), her mother's (Loretta Devine) longtime boyfriend. Michelle had earned an early release from prison for previous crimes and was reconnecting with an old love (Michael Boatman), but she quickly ended up back in jail after pulling out a gun and firing during a revival meeting headed by Jakes. Elise is magnificent in the lead role, filled with anger, hate, confusion, and tenderness, sometimes all at once. Schultz, best known for his music-heavy comedies, shows a deft touch with very sensitive subjects, exploring the power of prayer, rehabilitation, family responsibility, enduring friendship, drug addiction, and the prison system. Elise is unforgettable as the conflicted Michelle, a woman who has never known true love. Jakes is a gentle giant playing a fictional version of himself, both talking softly to Michelle in prison and preaching magnificently at the West Angeles revival meeting, backed by a wonderful choir. Schultz has reached a whole new plateau with this searing, surprising film that deserves a large audience.
| Features | Audio: English Dolby Digital Stereo | | Deleted Scenes | | Interactive Menus | | Never Before Seen Footage | | Related Sermon Material | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English, Spanish |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Foxvideo |
| Release Date: 4/11/2006 |
| Running Time: 110 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2004 | | Catalog ID: 2233135 | | UPC: 00024543231356 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Available Subtitles: English, Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Anamorphic Widescreen/Standard 2.35:1/1.33:1 [4:3] |
| Cast & Crew
| Awards |
Image Award (2005) |  | , Winner, Outstanding Independent Film |
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| | Professional Reviews | Los Angeles Times
"There's a bedrock honesty in WOMAN, THOU ART LOOSED in its grasp of human nature and behavior. This is one faith-based film that pulls no punches." 10/01/2004 p.E12USA Today
"[A] compelling drama about a young woman's lifetime of abuse, addiction, imprisonment and poverty....And it offers a compelling portrait of human tragedy and the journey to redemption." 10/22/2004 p.5E Chicago Sun-Times
"[G]ritty and heartbreaking..." 03/04/2005 p.12 Entertainment Weekly 2 of 10
The closing credits of "Woman, Thou Art Loosed", the adaptation of a megaselling novel by ''America's best preacher,'' Bishop T.D. Jakes, directs anyone interested in ''assistance'' to www.womanthouartloosedthemovie.com -- final proof that the film is really just a poorly dramatized infomercial. - Gregory Kirschling
Los Angeles Times 8 of 10
What's so impressive about Bishop Jakes, a warm and burly man with abundant compassion, is that he isn't preachy, in either the pulpit or on death row. He speaks to people's real-life problems and challenges and invites them to lay down their burdens in accepting the strength of a higher power in dealing with them. There's a bedrock honesty in "Woman, Thou Art Loosed" in its grasp of human nature and behavior. This is one faith-based film that pulls no punches. - Kevin Thomas
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