Here I Stand as a Progressive Racist

Rating: 10/10 (16 September 2017)

As a white young man, I am stuck in between on whether or not I am a racist for contributing the Birth of the Nation with a perfect score. Again, as a white young man, I am still a racist, no matter what. However, the point of this statement as if it's a racist for loving this film. This review intended to break down the reasons why I rated a perfect score to justify the fact that it didn't increase my view of myself as a racist.
D. W. Griffin demonstrated his clear intention to direct this film to support the promotion of the Ku Klux Klan and the white supremacy. As a further matter, he was known as a Civil Hero who fought for the Confederate had rationalized his motive to be the director. It portrayed his pride of KKK for their accomplishment to bring back the white supremacy after the Civil War. He, indeed, possessed a gifted talent in his abilities to create a powerful influence in both categories (history and cinemas).
In an aspect of the films, this movie took the first step to open the gate for the success in Hollywood. In other words, it considered as one of the most innovative movies in the cinema's history. Before this, the movie length of longer than one hour was unheard. The Birth of the Nation is probably one of the longest films (+3 hours), even in today's cinemas. Also, it's unbelievable by the fact that it excelled in nearly all aspects of production, including excellent acting and editing, in 1915.
The Birth of the Nation is a requirement to see for the history buffs. It's impossible to find someone who could act like Abraham Lincoln better than Joseph Henabery. I found myself lucky to watch Lincoln (2012) before I could watch this or it would bring me a disappointment.
For the history buffs, moreover, the Birth of the Nation reflected the accurate timeline in between before the Civil War and after the birth of KKK. It also portrayed the honest perspective of the society during these periods. Black Americans weren't allowed to be in the movies. White Americans took the floor as they painted black on themselves. I feel it's one of the positive assets to justify the progressive society by proving the White Americans clearly couldn't act like the Black Americans since the Black Americans have own unique attributes.
The film of the battles in Civil War was marvelous. It's a 1915 version of the war film in comparison with the Saving the Private Ryan (1998). I still remember my reaction when I first saw the Saving the Private Ryan. It blew my mind away. In the meantime, I couldn't imagine how people would react to the Birth of the Nation in 100 years ago. No wonder that it contained a powerful influence to push further apart the gap between the Black and White Americans. It affected my curiosity about how much did it factor to the racial segregation. Yes, again, the reason for stating my curiosity is to indicate the effects of dominance in persuasion from the Birth of the Nation.
I wish I could go on and on, but this review intended to reveal my viewpoint as a white young man. I insisted on repeating referred as a white YOUNG man because I'm still uneducated in regards to racism. However, it played a significant part to my willingness to learn and become a better person.
My perceptions of the Birth of the Nation are meaningful to me. It gave me the better understanding of the society during these periods. The explanation of the birth and evolution of KKK was perfect. It didn't lie about the motives that led the KKK to oppress the Black Americans. The impactful moment was when Black Americans were finally empowered to include the politics. The pathway seemed to be reaching a light at the end of the tunnel after a very long journey, but the birth of the KKK prolonged the pathway in the tunnel. Black Americans were held back in every aspect of privileges in the United States. At the end of the film, it showed the celebration of accomplishments of white supremacy.
Cowardly and selfish were the main impression that I get. It led me to my realization that the racism, sexism, and all the -isms started by the fear among White Americans with the full privileges.
The reality of the truth gave me the realistic depth of understanding what went on in the society during the periods of slavery, civil war, and the birth of KKK. Looking back, the sign of progressive society is active, but the vigorous motives, such as cowardly, fear, and selfish, had slackened the progress towards equality.
I disagreed with the conversancy that this film should be banned or else because I wouldn't want to stick with my state of mind before I watch this. It's, no doubt, an ultimate masterpiece of KKK propaganda. However, in my eyes, it had become one of the masterpieces ever in the education history. It's a must recommendation for my circle of friends to watch.