MINI-REVIEW: Selma

MOVIE
Selma

CAST
David Oyelowo, Tom Wilkinson

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
December 25, 2014 (NY/LA)
January 9, 2015 (WIDE)

DIRECTOR
Ava DuVernay

STUDIO
Paramount Pictures

RUNNING TIME
2 hours 7 minutes





STARS
****






REVIEW:

It seems like a common trend these days to have some type of film that discusses the racial barrier this country has gone through in the past go out for numerous Academy Awards.  This year, that film is Ava DuVernay's "Selma."  The film of course is about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s heroic venture to Selma, Alabama to march in protest against racism.  It's easy to dismiss this film as in 2013 alone we had "Lee Daniels' The Butler" and "12 Years a Slave" to quench our thirst for black historical dramas, the latter of those taking last year's Best Picture award at the Academy Awards.  However, it's hard to deny how important of a film this is to see.

I've seen people complain about the "historical inaccuracies" present here regarding President Johnson's views on Dr. King going to Selma, and to me I think that's dumb.  Putting that out of the way, this is an incredibly well made movie.  David Oyelowo is fantastic here as Dr. King, Ava DuVernay's direction is precise and well done, and as a whole this is a very entertaining movie.  It delivers on telling a message, providing genuine emotion, and accurately shows how people could be towards black people in the 1960s.  This film was nominated for Best Picture at this year's Academy Awards, and deservedly so.  If you want to complain about this film's inaccurate portrayal of Lyndon Johnson, be my guest.  But if that means that you're missing out on seeing arguably one of the best films 2014 has to offer, then that's a true shame in my book.



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