A Lesson Before Dying

Ernest J. Gaines’ bestseller, set in 1940s Louisiana, about an educated African-American (Don Cheadle) who returns to teach and fight racial injustice. Jefferson: Mekhi Phifer. Tante Lou: Cicely Tyson. Miss Emma: Irma P. Hall. Rev. Ambrose: Brent Jennings. Directed by Joseph Sargent., Don Cheadle, Mekhi Phifer, and Cicely Tyson star in this drama set in the 1940s about a black man sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit and teacher who is to counsel him as he awaits execution. A Lesson Before Dying is based on a novel by Ernest J. Gaines.