Beams with Sweeping Artistry

Rating: Null/10 (18 February 2015)

A narrative film with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as the protagonist has never been made. Think about that for a minute. One of the most revered American heroes in history and the face of the fight for equality has never been the focus of a movie before, despite the raging desire for biopics in Hollywood. (It is mindboggling to think about the impact Dr. King had, and the wealth of knowledge even young children know about him without a driving influence from the movies.) But that has changed now: "Selma" is the first film to position the narrative from Dr. King's point of view.
Set in 1964, the film begins with Annie Lee Cooper (portrayed by Oprah Winfrey) trying to register to vote in Selma, AL. Even with the necessary paperwork and knowledge, the registrar harasses Annie with grueling questions about government and the state, to all of which she replies accurately except for the final question that is nearly impossible to answer. Her application is thus denied. This scene paves the framework for the film, establishing the setting of the crux of the film and the bitter racial tensions surrounding the time period.
Martin Luther King, Jr. (played by David Oyelowo) frequently meets with President Lyndon B. Johnson, pleading with him to support the Voting Rights Act and to prevent obstruction and harassment of black citizens when they attempt to register to vote. President Johnson shrugs this off as a more trivial problem than other issues he must deal with. Dr. King devises a nonviolent protest, a march through Selma to the voting registration office. After this ends in an altercation and the nonviolent protesters are arrested, but another march from Selma to Montgomery is planned under Dr. King's resolute agenda for justice.
"Selma" is an exhilarating movie, one that feels especially relevant in the social climate of today where our society faces racial injustices like that of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. The movie does not preach nor intend to spark white guilt, but instead presents significant facts of the past in an absorbing way. It feels less like a history lesson and more like a bedtime story our parents tell us before we fall asleep.
The Academy Award nominations were announced in January and though "Selma" was among the eight films nominated for Best Picture, it only received one other nomination for Best Original Song. Many critics and Oscar pundits voiced their disappointment in the egregious snubs Selma endured for Ava DuVernay in Best Director and Oyelowo in Best Actor. When watching "Selma," it feels like Oyelowo was sent from God to portray Dr. King. Not only does he bear a resemblance to Dr. King and finds the distinctive outward traits of the man, he also inhabits the man beneath his surface.
Seldom are there movies where the directing upstages the story and actors, but "Selma" is one of those cases. DuVernay's sensational approach beams with a sweeping artistry. If she had been welcomed by the Academy, DuVernay would have been the first African American director ever nominated. Her work in "Selma" would have been worthy of holding such a landmark title in Oscar history.
"Selma" is the defining film that deserves to be tied to Martin Luther King Jr.'s revered legacy. It is something that should be seen by everyone across the country as a reminder of how far we have come as a society in acknowledging equal rights for everyone, and as even a bigger reminder of how far we still have a long way to go before the fight that Dr. King began is truly over.
Grade: A
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