Unbowed

Plot synopsis:
In 1995, an untenured professor of mathematics named Kim exposes an error in the College Scholastic Ability Test, leading to the humiliation of the professors who drafted it. A few years later, he is denied tenure and forced to resign despite the high quality of his research. Kim relocates to the United States for a time, but flies back to South Korea after the laws are amended to allow rejected professors to file wrongful dismissal law-suits.
In 2007, with his case lost and his appeal dismissed, Kim decides to confront the appeals judge at the entrance of the judge's apartment. He brings his sporting cross-bow, which he occasionally fires at a cross-bow range as a hobby. A physical struggle ensues and Kim is arrested. However, the judge, who initially appears uninjured, disappears from the scene and comes out a few minutes later with a minor puncture in his hip, and is taken to the hospital. An assault against a judge is a serious crime so the case attracts wide-spread attention.
Meanwhile, Park, a lawyer heavily in debt, is approached by Kim's wife to adopt the case, but the latter changes her mind when she notices that Park is an alcoholic. Kim's trial proceeds with a different lawyer but Kim pleads No Contest in response to the trial judge's apparent prejudice and dishonesty. Now in prison, Kim files for appeal and hires Park on the advice of Jang, a journal-ist. To Park's amazement, Kim has extensively studied the law on his own and frequently argues over how to present the case. As the appeals hearings continue, Kim repeatedly confronts the judge and prosecutor over their signs of dishonesty, and cites relevant laws and passages of the constitution which they have violated. With Park and Jang's assistance, he also points out several loop-holes in the prosecutor's evidence and the victim's testimony.
The appeals judge resigns rather than show favor to Kim's side. He is replaced by another appeals judge who does everything possible to obstruct the proceedings and protect the prosecutor, even though it is clear at this point that Kim never shot the victim. Rather, the victim stabbed himself minutes after Kim's arrest, and his family members procured the blood-stained clothes well after he was taken to the hospital. This also explains why the police never found the arrow which punctured the victim. Some citizens begin to riot and protest for Kim's innocence, while on the other hand, a judge's association demands the opposite verdict. Park, who gives up hope, decides to pour water on the appeal's judge as a protest, which would lead to his own imprisonment, but Jang confiscates the water bottles. Around this time, Kim is raped during the night by another male inmate.
The appeal is denied but Kim is given the more lenient sentence of 4 years as opposed to 10. While in prison, he continues to cite the law and to argue with the prison guards, and upon his release becomes a life-long activist for judicial transparency.

Tags: melodrama

Review:
UNBOWED & UNIQUE.
Jay Tavare's role as Waka Mani was played as if he were "born to it".
Tembi Locke's portrayal as Cleola was fabulous.
The combination of Jay & Tembi was beautiful.
The other actors were cast precisely and "hats off" to the casting director for taking the time to hand pick each actor.Although it is considered a western, Unbowed is much more than that.
It is a story about pre-prejudices, racism that exist between two minority groups, acceptance and learning to work together towards a common goal and most of all it is a story of love.
Love has no color.
I highly recommend this movie..
Unbowed Brilliance!.
I'm not a fan of typical Westerns.
This movie for me isn't a Western.
It's a beautiful story, set in the late 1800s.
The movie basically is about Lakota warriors, one of them a chief, sent to an all Black college as a test to see if Indians can learn.There is racism and racist comments directed towards the Lakota warriors, especially by Junius, played By Catero Colbert.
He does a fantastic job of making you hate him.The movie from beginning to end captivated me.
I have already watched this movie fives times very recently!
Waka Mani(played masterfully by incredible actor, Jay Tavare)is a very proud, honest, rebellious,strong, determined Lakota chief.
Tavare's portrayal is so impressive to me because from the minute he appears on screen, he has the viewer in the palm of his hand.
The character is multi faceted and colorful.I also rather enjoyed the love story.
It's obvious the two characters, Cleola and Waka Mani are curious about and attracted to each other from their first meeting.All the players are incredible here.
The entire movie is full of rich characters.
You get the sense of the strong bond between the Lakota warriors.
These are obvious men with strong friendship.
There is a sad scene that truly proves that.Ron Glass is, as always, brilliant in his role as the hard,strict president of the college.The love story is beautiful.
You root for the characters the entire time.
There is a very tasteful,sensuous and beautiful love scene in this movie.My only complaint is that the movie, though two hours was not turned into a mini series.
You are left wondering what happened after the two main characters left together.There is a lot of history here that most of us weren't taught in school.
Do yourself a favor and buy this movie..
Unbowed a wonderful and educational tool that even had some of my family history in the movie!.
I am a Pettiford descendant of the Free African Americans who are also mixed with different Native American tribes from North Carolina that migrated to Virginia, New Jersey and out west.
When I 1st turned to this movie it was on the western channel on cable with about 30 minutes left of it.
Then I read what it was about I said to my daughter this movie could be about our family.
So I set my TiVo to tape it in the middle of the night.
I came home yesterday to watch it from the beginning and sure enough Michelle Thomas' character Anna's last name was Pettiford.
This is a great movie and it shows some of our relationships with the red & white man.
It also showed the class system back then.
All in all myself and my 3 young daughters thought that it was a great movie and that everyone should see it!
This movie also made me want to look more into my history.
We have traced it back to the 1500's but their are a lot of pieces to the puzzle missing.
Thank you for such an educating and entertaining experience Ms. Mildred Lewis!
Paulette.
What an honor to Watch Unbowed.
As I watched this movie I said, 'it's about time we had some truthful and honest movies to be place in a nature sating'.
We need more movies like this.
Very interesting movie, points and surprise that the black race would be prejudice toward the Indian race consider the two was in the same situation.
As a black Native American Indian I was please to watch a movie that was so detail and excellent acting my hat goes off to the director and choice of performers.
If my great grandmother were alive she would have been pleased, it would have been an honor to watch a movie about her own life.
My great grandmother was a Cherokee Indian woman that lived in a difficult time and the screenplay of Waka Mani and Cleola was if I was watching her life.
Thanks for the pleasure and the educational events.Windwalker.
Very Good Historical Movie-good actors-good script.
Good historical movie without being sickeningly PC.
Script intelligently done and is believable.Nice conflicts between cultures, well defined, and interesting to see education defined as "white man's culture".Good actors in this movie, and good acting.
Characters well developed and interesting.
Strong Indian character who learns that there is a lot that is good in the white man's culture.
Strong black characters who tout the values of the white culture and education to the Indian.Ron Glass in a good part; one in which he plays a black educator with high moral values.
Very good bonding between characters; you felt a lot of friendship displayed.
Directing and casting first-rate: all in all an excellent movie..
My thoughts about "Unbowed".
I really thought the moving was good.
It is a movie that can teach a person about love.
Love of fellow man and about loving another person regardless of what back ground or race you are from.
It is what this world needs.
It is about tolerance of other races.
It is about sacrifices.
The actors were really good.
You really felt you were there back in that time period and felt how those people felt.
It made me want a relationship like the two main characters had.
That was real love.
Everyone should try and see this movie.
I saw it on cable on the Western channel last year.
I hope it will come to DVD real soon.
I would like to have it in my movie collection.
And Ray Tavare is truly a hunk!.
Exceptional And Tastefully Moving!!!.
This movie challenges ones mind to see racism from another perspective.
It forces the issue of racism not on a black/white side of things, but an African American and Indian proportionally view.Both having the same feelings, both having two sides of understanding life, its balance for the future, and its weight on the past.
Both predilection of learning what it means to be a citizen in a country bent on prejudice.
Both facing prejudice from within the confines of the college they attend.An African American woman must learn to surpass the boundaries of those in her presence to accept the love whom she teaches.
Her many admirers surround her in protection of her innocence one of whom she is engaged.A young Indian Chief must confront his own prejudices and those around him to find freedom among the free who persecute him because of his savage nature.Escape could lead to death.
Will she follow him and leave behind all she had gained for the love of a savage and face unknown obstacles?The element of emotion between these two will absolutely stir you.
the feeling of anger and hostility will ignite you.
You'll fall in love with these two!
Exceptional and very tastefully moving on both sides of the divide!!!!!Very Highly Recommended!!!!!!!!.
Unbowed.
I truly liked this movie and the actors involved with it.
I believe that they each gave very strong and believable performances.
I would like to know however, if the movie is based on an actual account.
Is there more to the story than what we've been shown?
It made me think of the outcome for the two lovers as well as the ones left behind.
It would be satisfying to know if this has a further story to tell.
Thanks for presenting this little piece of history it was enjoyable to watch and place yourself in the place of the characters.
Both of the main characters were strong and I felt their passion as well as their search for one another.
I hope they made it!.
I'm adding this to my list of great black cinema must see.
I saw the movie late the other night on Black Starz and was really impressed.
To me it falls in line with movies that I love like "Imitation of Life", "Feast of All Saints" and "Gone with the Wind"...yes, I know that is not "black cinema" but the movie embodies the first black Oscar Winner.
I thought Unbowed was a great love story and I missed the opportunity to see it from the beginning but when it ended I was begging for more.
Anyone know where this movie may be purchased?
If it's on this site, forgive me as I have not been on this site before.
What I wonder about the movie is if it was a novel or screenplay and where I can find the book if possible.
What the movie also did was spark my interest in what had happened to the late actress Michelle Thomas who played a character in the film.
She will be greatly missed.
Anyone out there that has some insight to the film hit me back..
learning on many levels.
Picking a movie to watch is a learning experience in itself.
Why this one and not that one or we watch because we know someone that liked or disliked the movie.
Whatever the reason, we learn from the experience and put ourselves on another road to learn something new if we let it happen.
This movie can be a learning experience at the same time that we're entertained visually.
There's much to see, if we learn to watch.