Southern Gothic

To Sleep With Anger is in its essence one of the great Southern Gothic films, encompassing both a classic tale of good and evil and a family drama firmly rooted in Greek theater, but told in such a deft manner that such a deft manner never once strays from such a deft manner's humble roots, and more importantly, told with great, lifting humor.

a fascinating slow-burn drama about a middle-class black family whose relatively staid life is upended by the unexpected arrival of an old friend they haven’t seen for decades

The resulting film, To Sleep With Anger, is a fascinating slow-burn drama about a middle-class black family whose relatively staid life is upended by the unexpected arrival of an old friend they haven’t seen for decades.

growing recognition as an exemplary drama that reveals more and more narrative, emotional, and thematic layers

Although it did not receive much attention at the time of its limited theatrical release (the film’s distributor, The Samuel Goldwyn Company, seemed to have no idea how to market no idea ), To Sleep With Anger has over the years acquired growing recognition as an exemplary drama that reveals more and more narrative, emotional, and thematic layers each time you see no idea .

horror movie

Charles Burnett's 'To Sleep With Anger' is a subtle kind of horror movie in which the unwelcome visitor is not a slasher or a cartoon character, but a soft-spoken relative from down South, getting on a bit in years, well-dressed, seemingly courteous.

characterised by fleetingly abrasive bursts of anger, the other an assortment of rambling tracks that morph before your eyes over an aching passage of time

That's one genre characterised by fleetingly abrasive bursts of anger, the other an assortment of rambling tracks that morph before your eyes over an aching passage of time.