Review of The Birth of a Nation (2016) by Goran J — 20 Feb 2017

I was curious how I would respond to 'The Birth of a Nation' after its somewhat rollercoaster-esque reception from the world at large. I didn't follow the controversy too closely but it definitely seemed like another case of the filmmaker's personal life tainting people's opinion of the film. Now that I have seen it I can safely say it isn't a masterpiece tarnished by Nate Parker's reputation but it is a very strong film, beautifully made with a lot of passion.

What I think holds the film back from greatness is the rather straightforward way in which it depicts the violent revolution that Nat Turner became legend for. While there certainly shouldn't be any questioning of Nat's justification for the anger that pushed him to extreme violence, I wanted the movie to explore the decision to do so a little more. With so much buildup of Nat's slowly simmering anger and disgust of the world around him dominating over half of the movie's running time, it seems the film makes a quick leap to him suddenly organizing a group of men to make their historic revolt. A little more substance in that department might have made for something all the more memorable and worthy of additional viewings.

This is a must watch though for fellow history buffs like myself!