''Hope & Redemption: The Lena Baker Story'' is a 2008

historical History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

film. It is an adaptation of the book by Lela Bond Phillips, which chronicles the life and death of

Lena Baker Lena Baker (June 8, 1900 – March 5, 1945) was an African American maid in Cuthbert, Georgia, United States, who was wrongfully convicted of capital murder of a white man, Ernest Knight. She was executed by the state of Georgia in 1945. Ba ...

, an African-American woman in Georgia who was convicted in 1945 of

capital murder Capital murder was a statutory offence of aggravated murder in Great Britain, and Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland, which was later adopted as a legal provision to define certain forms of aggravated murder in the United States. In som ...

and was the only woman to be executed by

electric chair An electric chair is a device used to execute an individual by electrocution. When used, the condemned person is strapped to a specially built wooden chair and electrocuted through electrodes fastened on the head and leg. This execution method, ...

. She was posthumously pardoned by the state in 2005. The film was written for the screen and directed by

Ralph Wilcox Ralph Wilcox (July 9, 1818 – April 18, 1877) was the first teacher and practicing doctor in Portland, Oregon.Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956. He also served in the Provisional Government o ...

and stars

Tichina Arnold Tichina Rolanda Arnold (; born June 28, 1969) is an American actress and singer. She began her career as a child actor, appearing in supporting roles in '' Little Shop of Horrors'' (1986) and ''How I Got into College'' (1989) before being cast as ...

and

Peter Coyote Peter Coyote (born Robert Peter Cohon; October 10, 1941) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, author and narrator of films, theatre, television, and audiobooks. He worked on films such as '' E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (1982), '' Cr ...

. As the opening night premiere film for the 2008

Atlanta Film Festival The Atlanta Film Festival (ATLFF) is a long-running, international film festival held in Atlanta, Georgia operated by the Atlanta Film Society, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Started in 1976 and occurring every spring, the festival shows a ...

, it sold out. The film was also screened at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

on May 16, 2008.

Plot

The film chronicles the life of

, born to a sharecropper family, who later worked as a maid in a small county town to support her three children. Convicted in 1945 of

by an all-white, male jury, Baker was the only woman in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

to be executed by the

. Baker acted in self-defense in the fatal shooting of her employer, Ernest Knight, during a struggle. He was an abusive drunk who had forced the 44-year-old woman into a sexual relationship and sometimes held her at his place against her will. She was posthumously pardoned in 2005.

Cast

** Kaya Camp as Young Lena Baker *

as Ernest Knight *

Michael Rooker Michael Rooker (born April 6, 1955) is an American actor known for his roles as Henry in '' Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer'' (1986), Chick Gandil in ''Eight Men Out'' (1988), Frank Baily in ''Mississippi Burning'' (1988), Terry Cruger in ''S ...

as Randolph County Sheriff *

Beverly Todd Beverly Todd (born July 11, 1946) is an American actress, producer and writer. She is known for her roles in films '' Brother John'' (1971), '' Moving'' (1988), '' Lean on Me'' (1989) and ''The Bucket List'' (2007). On television, Todd appeared ...

as Lena's Mother * Randy McDowell as Lyle Jacobs * Tom Huff as Ken Thomas * L. Warren Young as Milton * Ron Clinton Smith * Dwayne Boyd * Santana Shelton as Nettie * Kenny Cook as Barry Arthur * Kajuan Wilson as Earl Baker

References

External links

* * *
Ralph Wilcox, "Films Have Power to Be the Voice of Change"
''Moving Pictures Magazine'' 2008 films 2008 biographical drama films American biographical drama films Drama films based on actual events Films about capital punishment Films set in 1944 Films set in 1945 Films set in Georgia (U.S. state) Films based on non-fiction books 2008 drama films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films {{bio-film-stub