Everyone Needs to See ‘Selma’
I struggle to find the right words to explain how I felt after watching Selma. I probably won’t be able to do the film justice with a proper review but if there is one certainty, it is that everyone needs to see this movie.
David Oyelowo was great as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He, along with Ava DuVernay humanized Dr. King in such a beautiful way. We know and have heard about the civil rights leader and icon but walking out of the theater, you felt as though you knew a little bit more about the man. The depression, the guilt, the underlying fear – I felt it all. The movie was told with such a quiet intensity at times that it took my breath away.
Ava DuVernay kicks ass directing this film. The subtle choices she makes with the direction of this film are timely. From the opening scene with Dr. King and his wife in the hotel room right before accepting the Nobel Peace Prize, to them in their living room listening to the recorded tapes, to Dr. King swinging on the porch as he writes a letter to Coretta while smoking a cigarette. Something just tells me that those choices and the way they were told were all Ava.
Coming up on the 50th anniversary of this event and considering all that is going on this country right now, this movie is so timely. This film showed you the strategies, the time and the true risk it took to really affect change. It wasn’t easy, it wasn’t safe and at times it may not have seemed smart to some people but it was necessary. We wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for Dr. King and all these other courageous leaders. It shows us how far we have come in 50 years but reminds of how far we still have to go.
Without a doubt, I believe Ava and David should have been nominated for an Academy Award. Carmen Ejogo also shines as Coretta Scott King. I am not familiar with her work to be honest but after this I will be making it a point to check her out.
There is so much more that can be said about this film. I can go into detail about my thoughts on each character played and the scene choices etc but I honestly cannot. This might not be the best review I have ever done but all I really want you to do after reading this is go and see Selma!!
Selma starring David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo, Tessa Thompson, Tom Wilkinson and Oprah Winfrey and directed by Ava DuVernay is in theaters now!
Natalya is the author of All The Things I Never Said, a soul-stirring collection of short stories, prose and love letters for the soulful wanderers, the brokenhearted and the hopeless romantics.
You can follow her rantings and occasional sparks of brilliance on Twitter @NatalyaMuncuff.
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