Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy as a civil rights leader has cast such a large shadow that it’s hard to imagine what the Civil Rights Movement would be without him. In 2014, Ava Duvernay lent her directing skills to create the powerfully crafted Civil Rights film Selma to the screen.
The story centers around Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., played beautifully by David Oyelowo, attempts to procure African-Americans the right to vote unencumbered by systemic oppression and voter blocking. The film was nominated for Best Picture, and won Best Original Song for the stirring “Glory” by John Legend and Common. It works as a reflection of how America was in the '60s, a time of increased racial bigotry, turmoil, and strife.
In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, it is only fitting that Selma gets another evaluation on why it truly is the best MLK Jr. movie of all time.
The film is a wonderful portrayal of king
David Oyelowo has had a remarkable acting career with The Butler, Nightingale, and Queen of Katwe. The actor has been trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, and brought his talents to the silver screen when he took on the tumultuous task of playing Martin Luther King Jr. The job might have already been hard but Oyelowo seems to almost disappear into the role of King.
He perfectly reflects the mannerisms and the philosophies of King and uses that to bring the audience to a tearful point of empathy with the legend. The performances ranges from powerful preaching to quiet moments of confidence that could move mountains in either situation, but also shows Martin Luther King in all his humanity, even his very human flaws. Oyelowo was hard-pressed in the role to not let his emotions overcome the situation and succumb to any faults he had, like King himself. The actor boasts a stunning performance that is only made better with grounded 1960s realism.
It shows the true horrors during the Civil Rights Movement
Speaking of 1960s realism, one thing that the film is unapologetic about is its depiction of the Civil Rights Movement. What’s most gruesome and nerve-racking about the film is the number of times African-Americans and Civil Rights supporters fall victim to violence and hate crimes in their endeavor for Civil Rights.
The film depicts bombings, beatings, and shootings throughout the movie’s runtime. It’s more than accurate in its depiction and proves to be a gut-wrenching viewing for audiences. While many King-related film projects and documentaries will only show short clips or brief footage of injustices, this film goes full-throttle and immerses the viewer into the world of the Jim Crow South. It’s both brutal and glorious to behold in execution as a gritty reenactment.
The supporting cast is outstanding
In other films about King, the situation was always hyper-focused on MLK and what he did and who he was. However, they never go into much detail about the supporting characters in and around King’s life, the people he loved, and the people who helped strengthen him. For example, King’s wife Coretta, played by Carmen Ejogo with fervor and passion, grows concerned when her husband has possibly been unfaithful to her, and yet grapples with the importance of King's moment and doesn't want to give any of his opponents fuel to fight the Movement. That becomes a detail that has been largely omitted from the narrative of Dr. King's life.
The film also stars Common as James Bevel, Oprah Winfrey as Annie Lee Cooper, Tessa Thompson as Diane Nash, and Lakeith Stanfield as Jimmie Lee Jackson. All of these men and women have largely gone unnoticed since King’s legacy has been nearly incomparable. Thanks to this film, these characters have been brought to more light and have been given more development in their contributions to Civil Rights.
It has a clearly defined villain
Of course, one character that remains just as despicable to this day as he was in the movie, is Governor George Corley Wallace. Tim Roth (The Incredible Hulk) embodies the vicious and racist ideologies that Wallace stood by in the Civil Rights era/Jim Crow South. Wallace tries everything that he can to stop the emergence of the Civil Rights Movement and uses his cronies and equally racist sheriffs to harass and break off any peaceful demonstrations that the movement spawned.
What makes Wallace truly frightening is the fact that he can send his wicked, unlawful, and crooked emissaries to savagely beat and kill a group of people without warning and without mercy as he cowardly hides behind a confederate flag that clouded his judgment with hate and lies. The realization that government and authority figures have violent means of control is haunting then as it is today. People have only known Wallace from what they've read about him in books or old newsreels, or Gary Sinise's television film. Roth’s performance elaborates on the man and is filled with vile, sinister contempt for a struggling group of people.
It’s a testament of progressivism
In an effort to maintain equality, King was instrumental in the Civil Rights Movement and without him, it may have never come to pass. This film shows how powerful and moving the movement was and how it shaped generations of people to have better lives. The film shows the struggles that King endured when pushing this movement forward and how, in the end, it became his undoing. The recent years of protests against police killings, voter suppression, and income inequality truly couldn't exist without the progressive sensibilities of Martin Luther King and his group in the '60s.
Understanding the pain and suffering that King endured is almost unbearable to watch, but it's vitally important to do so, especially on a day like Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The beauty of this movement moved the Earth like no other time in history and the film perfectly captures that.