Selma (2015) (English Language)

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Review

128min

Cast: David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo, Tom Wilkinson…and more

David Oyelowo stars as Martin Luther King Jr. in a particular period of the American Civil Rights movement where a socio-political struggle for equal voting rights in the south led to the legendary Alabama march, from Selma to the state capital Montgomery.

The first thing to be established is that this is no biography of the complex life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., rather a human study of the man’s character through this very specific period of recent American History and how all of the struggles involved led to the “relative equality” Black Americans have today.

It’s common for films that deal with sensitive and contentious subject matter to get caught up in the grandiosity and raw emotion of it all, which is understandable, but what Selma does particularly well is not only to show the personal struggles within the main players in the movement but to get across the clear tactical and strategic nature of the Civil Rights Movement under Dr. King.

There was a clear method to the actions and risks taken that ultimately galvanized an entire country to put pressure on those in power to make fundamental federal changes, in the form of the “Voting Rights Act of 1965”, one of the strengths of the film is how effectively this message comes across and is a testament to the direction from Ava DuVernay.

The strength of the film is also however one of its main weaknesses in that the tone of the movie is rather slow and contemplative, ultimately Selma fails to move and engage as much as it might have and is more valuable as a tool for youth education than as a memorable piece of cinematic art.

Having said that Selma is informative and engaging enough to merit some of the critical praise it has received, particularly when you consider this is the first major Hollywood depiction of Dr. King’s life, David Oyelowo’s central performance alone is worth watching the movie for and despite recent controversies is the only Oscar nomination “snub” that we find hard to explain.

Selma is released in the UK and beyond on Friday the 6th of February.

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Malcolm X (1992)

A powerful biography directed by Spike Lee and starring Denzel Washington as Malcolm X, a controversial American civil-rights leader and black nationalist who through his membership of the Nation of Islam and in opposition to Dr. Martin Luther King’s beliefs, advocated the use of violence and “Any means necessary” to achieve equality for black Americans.

Directed by Spike Lee and starring Denzel Washington, Angela Bassett and Delroy Lindo among others.