Tomorrow (1972) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

The film takes place in rural Mississippi, in a remote farming area where a small, close-knit community lives. The countryside is austere, defined by poverty and the struggle of agricultural life. The local courthouse serves as the focal point of public life, reflecting how community reputation and social judgment dominate this isolated world.

• rural mississippi
• farming community
• small town setting
• mississippi countryside

The narrative spans approximately 20 years, moving between a past era and a present-day courtroom scene. Flashbacks reveal how Jackson Fentry sheltered Sarah and raised her son, while the trial in the present exposes how memory and guilt influence the jury's decision. The story emphasizes endurance across decades rather than a specific historical year.

• 1970s
• twenty years
• non-linear timeline
• courtroom drama
• flashbacks

The story explores how law and moral judgment collide when society labels a life as insignificant. The lone dissenting vote on the jury becomes a window into deeper truths about worth, memory, and responsibility. The defense attorney's narration reframes what appears to be murder as a test of integrity rather than a simple crime, questioning who deserves mercy and why.

• justice
• moral judgment
• jury
• worth
• mercy
• legal drama

The Mississippi countryside frames every character interaction, highlighting poverty, stoicism, and hard work. Community reputation matters greatly in this isolated world, and small-town dynamics influence who is perceived as guilty or virtuous. The setting underscores the fragility and resilience of everyday people struggling against both economic hardship and social prejudice.

• poverty
• rural community
• small town dynamics
• mississippi
• stoicism
• social judgment

Memories of care, loss, and promises kept haunt Jackson Fentry across decades. The film treats endurance as a quiet, dignified act, a man who bears others' burdens while refusing to forget those he loved. Time deepens the sense that some lives remain significant long after public notice fades, making the theme of remembrance central to understanding Fentry's character.

• memory
• endurance
• loss
• promises
• legacy
• time

Jackson Fentry is a lonely Mississippi farmer portrayed by Robert Duvall who takes in a destitute pregnant drifter and later raises her son. His quiet, steadfast morality drives him to endure betrayal and social contempt without wavering. He represents the film's meditation on hidden strength, someone who refuses to let a life pass unseen and maintains his dignity despite overwhelming hardship.

• jackson fentry
• robert Duvall
• farmer
• moral character
• resilience

Sarah Eubanks is the pregnant drifter whom Fentry takes in, played by Olga Bellin. Her intense bond with Fentry frames the film's emotional core. Her life is marked by hardship and fragile hope, and her tragic end underscores the human cost of the town's harsh judgments and social neglect.

• sarah eubanks
• pregnant drifter
• tragic character
• olga bellin

The Thorpe brothers are a group of men who forcibly took the boy from Fentry, representing the oppressive forces that push marginalized people out of their kin and community. Their actions contribute directly to the tragedy at the story's center, embodying the community's harsh judgment and the cycles of poverty and cruelty that trap the film's characters.

• thorpe brothers
• antagonists
• oppression
• community cruelty

The courtroom serves as the film's framing device, with the present-day trial providing structure to the non-linear story. The defense attorney narrates the proceedings, guiding the audience toward questions of motive and meaning behind the apparent crime. This setup allows the film to examine guilt, innocence, and moral judgment through the lens of a jury deliberation.

• courtroom
• trial
• jury
• legal framing
• non-linear story

The ending feels bittersweet, while the trial's outcome and the boy's death are sad, the narrative concludes with a philosophical observation about the hidden strength and endurance of 'the lowly.' The film offers a glimmer of meaning and respect for Fentry's character amidst tragedy, suggesting that quiet dignity and moral steadfastness have value even when society fails to recognize it.

• bittersweet ending
• hope
• tragedy
• dignity
• moral strength

Lawyer Douglas, played by Peter Masterson, serves as the defense attorney who narrates the trial. He guides the audience toward questions of motive and meaning behind what appears to be a crime. Rather than presenting the case as mere legality, he frames Fentry's guilt or innocence as a moral issue about value and humanity, adding philosophical depth to the courtroom proceedings.

• defense attorney
• narrator
• peter masterson
• moral philosophy

In this isolated Mississippi community, reputation determines worth in the eyes of neighbors. The close-knit nature of the town means that outsiders like Sarah are judged harshly, and those who defy social norms, such as Fentry sheltering a pregnant drifter, face contempt. These dynamics shape the tragic events and the moral questions the film asks about collective responsibility and mercy.

• small town
• community judgment
• social norms
• isolation
• reputation