One of the better movies of the year, but it wasn't as good as I hoped it would be. Oyelowo did a good job but he lacked passion

Rating: 7/10 (20 February 2015)

"Our lives are not fully lived if we're not willing to die for those we love, for what we believe." Even though the Civil Rights Act of 1964 has been passed, African Americans are still struggling for voting equality. President Johnson isn't willing to help Martin Luther King Jr. (Oyelowo) in this movement until after the election cycle. When a group of African American's decide to March from Selma to Montgomery Alabama in order to raise awareness they are attacked and beaten. Left with no other option Martin Luther King decides to join in the next march while President Johnson and Governor Wallace are stuck in the middle of the ethical debate. Before I watched this movie all I heard about was how it was snubbed by the Oscars for Actor and Director. "How can a movie only be up for best picture and nothing else?" I went in with that mindset. After watching this I have to say I agree with the nomination. The movie is very good and very much worth seeing. The pacing of the movie was very jerky though. Just when the movie becomes tense it begins to slow down and loses the momentum it had going for it. Oyelowo did a really good job playing Dr. King, but he seemed to lack passion in the speeches and it felt like he was trying to just re-create what he watched the real Dr. King do. On the other hand though, when you are playing someone that iconic you are more or less not trying to screw it up and the tenseness of playing Dr. King really showed. All of that said though the movie is very good and I do recommend it. Overall, this is one of the better movies of the year, but it wasn't as good as I hoped it would be. Much like The Butler it is not deserving of multiple awards even though the subject matter is important. I disappointingly give this a B.