Selma was such a powerful and moving movie! It was done so well, better than I imagined.
I cried...I laughed... I felt inspired!
For one thing, it was very timely. You witness police brutality, including the killing of a young Black man. However, it goes beyond just making you as a viewer think, "Wow...can't believe this is still happening in 2014." Two very important points were made by MLK: 1) It takes more than just marching 2) voting is important. Voting was important to vote out the bad sheriff's. Being registered to vote was important to be able to sit on a jury and protect our own who are overly convicted and get justice for those who get away with hurting us. While Selma was about getting the right to vote, it is poignant today in regards to us utilizing our right to vote! We can't just show up to the poll for presidential elections with an African-American candidate. We have to vote in all elections to get in lawmakers and officials who will help our community, as well as vote out those harming our community.
I loved how they humanized MLK and shared aspects of him everyone may not be familiar with. They didn't make him perfect. They showed people questioning and challenging his decisions. They touched on his infidelity. However, it is important to point out that the film did an excellent job of making him seem human without seeming to trash his image and legacy.
My favorite thing about the film is how they pulled in other story lines. Major spoiler...the first scene is of the 4 little girls killed in the church bombing (Spike Lee directed a documentary of this story). They did it in a very interesting way. When the scene opens, I instantly think of the 4 little girls, but there are actually 6 children (including a little boy). Just when I start to think maybe it's not referencing that story line, the 4 girls separate from the boy and one of the girls. And then the story plays out. The theater was within the flame, with the little girls visible, for quite some time. It was a powerful way to show this bombing. To make you almost feel what those poor little girls felt.
I appreciated that the film didn't shy away from showing the tension SNCC had with SCLC, and even within itself.
I loved how they introduced various characters throughout the film, White and Black, who may have seemed tangential to the primary story line. Some more than others. I won't go through all of them, but one that stood out especially was a White woman. It was clear they wanted you to know she was in the film and there at Selma, but she didn't have a major role in the film. In fact, I don't think anyone ever said her name, nor did she have scenes with any of the major characters. They showed her watching the initial attack in Selma on television. They showed her heading to Selma to help. They showed her welcoming one person in a crowd and giving them a sandwich. AND THEN, at the very end, when they go to stills on characters and provide subtitles on what happened to them after Selma, they did one on her! It turned out, she was killed shortly after the march when she was taking people home from the march. I was so very impressed by this! Yes, MLK is the central character of the film, as he was the central person of the movement. BUT, he was not THE movement. There were so many moving parts. There were so many selfless people. And most importantly, he wasn't the only one killed for that movement!
This film was like a call to action! We all have a role in making this country (and world) better. And whether we are the well-known leader or not, our contribution is important and needed. And in this film, I believe a lot of unrecognized, and dare I say therefore unappreciated, contributors to the movement, were finally recognized and given their due honor.
I absolutely loved the film. It is a MUST SEE!