Probably not the epic it would have been twenty years ago, but still a lot to admire

Rating: 9/10 (28 October 2015)

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning
In the 1960s, Professor Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) is in the thrust of his epic civil rights battle, which has come to the attention of President Johnson (Tom Wilkinson.) Johnson tries to assist King with some platitudes and assistance, but King believes the next major step forward is securing equal voting rights for him and his people. In the face of relentless violence and intimidation, from both sides of the law, King presses on regardless, with an epic march from Selma to Alabama.
It seems to be the in thing these days, when making a film about an important historical figure, to focus on one particular event in their lives, rather than to make an all out epic dramatisation of their life story, like they would have twenty years ago, when the likes of Steven Spielberg or Ron Howard would have turned it into a three hour yarn of the sort I remember from my youth. For someone who remembers these types of films so vividly, this more condensed approach is a little hard to adjust to, but by zooming in on one important event in Kings life, Ava DuVarney has made a piece of art all the same.
I always imagined who would portray King if ever a film was made about him, and it seems the honours have fallen to British actor David Oyelowo. Given the endless list of Hollywood candidates available, this is an achievement in and of itself, but that he nails it on the head so perfectly is something even better. Oyelowo captures King's speech, delivery, fluidity, mannerisms and general presence perfectly, and fits the role physically too. Given he's carrying the film, and his is the role it all centres on, this is a great thing, but it's not as if fine support from the likes of Wilkinson and Tim Roth don't help.
It seems the honours have fallen on me to do the 200th review of this film, and given how well everything was pulled off, this is no poor honour. ****