Selma Movie Review

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The Good: Emotionally powerful from beginning to end. This film doesn't shy away from holding back on some shameful times in our history. Director Ava DuVernay does a marvelous job at showing her interpretation of events that centered around the city of Selma. The movie is jam packed with with a variety of actors that make interesting cameos. Tim Roth does almost too good of job playing Governor Wallace. David Oyelowo does probably one of the best portrayals of Dr. King in a feature film. Everything from his speeches to his southern dialect will make you believe that you're watching Dr. King on the screen. Probably one of the most interesting dynamics in the movie is how different groups (civil rights leaders, politicians, etc) each had different strategies in regards to how to deal with the civil rights movement.

The Bad: Unless you're a historian, it may be a little difficult to distinguish truth, fiction and embellishment. It should be noted that this shouldn't matter because the director's intent was not to make a historical retelling of the events. However, there are some scenes that she interprets in a particular way that may raise some eyebrows.

The Reason: I think the most important thing to know going into this movie is that it is NOT about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. While he was obviously a central figure, the film is about the civil rights marches in Selma that later changed America. It's definitely a tough movie to watch without feeling emotional afterwards. The film highlights the fact that only 50 years ago, we're still facing similar issues in our society today. Is this worth your time and money? I'd say so. Get your tickets for it, or get it when it comes on DVD. It's definitely a movie many should see.

The Rating: 9/10

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