Review of Selma (2014) by Patrick L — 19 Aug 2015

"Ava DuVernay's powerful civil rights drama is one of the best movies of 2014".

Movie Review: Selma.

Date Viewed: January 17 2015.

Directed By Ava DuVernay (I Will Follow and Middle of Nowhere).

Written By Paul Webb.

Starring: David Oyelowo, Tom Wilkinson, Carmen Ejogo, Oprah Winfrey, Andre Holland, Tessa Thompson, Wendell Pierce,.

Giovanni Ribisi, Lorraine Toussaint, Stephan James, Tim Roth, Dylan Baker, Common,.

Alessandro Nivola, Keith Stanfield, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Jeremy Strong, Stephen Root and Martin Sheen.

"Selma" has been the subject of controversy but it is a powerful history lesson featuring a great performance from David Oyelowo as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. "Selma" is mostly about the 1965 marches from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama led by MLK, James Bevel, Hosea Williams and John Lewis. MLK was fighting for voting rights for every black person in America but President Lyndon B. Johnson put the legislation on hold because he had 101 issues to deal with including the Vietnam war.

When the Academy Award nominations were announced, "Selma" got a nomination for Best Picture but David Oyelowo and Ava DuVernay didn't receive nominations for Best Actor and Best Director. Many people were outraged by these snubs and I can see why, Paramount did a poor job of marketing this great movie. "Selma" came out so late in the Oscar race, Paramount didn't seem to care that much for it. Those executives should be ashamed of themselves because Ava DuVernay's powerful civil rights drama is one of the best movies of 2014.

Set in 1965, Martin Luther King (Oyelowo) led a dangerous campaign to secure voting rights for every African-American in the face of a violent opposition led by Alabama Governor George Wallace (Tim Roth). When the police beatings are shown on national television, a number of white citizens join the march. President Johnson (Tom Wilkinson) tries to convince King to stop the second march from Selma to Montgomery but he declines. In the end, Johnson did manage to sign the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and it was a significant victory for the civil rights movement. MLK's campaign for civil rights couldn't be more relevant to today events, right now the battle for civil rights is still going on after the events in Ferguson and Staten Island.

David Oyelowo is so powerful as Dr. King, he should've been nominated over Bradley Cooper for "American Sniper". Oyelowo captures his pride and his humanity. MLK was a powerful figure in American history and Oyelowo is spectacular in this timely historical drama. Carmen Ejogo is also terrific as Coretta King, Tom Wilkinson hams it up real good as President Johnson, Tim Roth is brilliant as Governor Wallace and Oprah Winfrey has a great supporting role as Annie Lee Cooper, an African-American who joins Dr. King's campaign for equal voting rights. The task of directing "Selma" would have been a King-size job for any black director but Ava DuVernay has made an outstanding movie about the fight for racial injustice.

"Selma" was indeed a daunting challenge for Oyelowo, DuVernay and screenwriter Paul Webb but they have succeeded in making a cinematic masterpiece.