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 Selma 

What grade would you give this film?
A 45%  45%  [ 5 ]
B 36%  36%  [ 4 ]
C 0%  0%  [ 0 ]
D 0%  0%  [ 0 ]
F 18%  18%  [ 2 ]
Total votes : 11

 Selma 
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Selma

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Selma is a 2014 American historical drama film directed by Ava DuVernay and written by Paul Webb. It is based on the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches led by James Bevel, Hosea Williams, and Martin Luther King, Jr. of SCLC and John Lewis of SNCC. The film stars David Oyelowo as King, Tom Wilkinson as President Lyndon Johnson, Common as Bevel, and Carmen Ejogo as Coretta Scott King.

Pathé financed the film, and Plan B Entertainment and Harpo Productions co-produced the project. Paramount Pictures will distribute Selma in the United States and Canada.

Selma premiered at the American Film Institute Festival on November 11, 2014. It will have a limited release in the United States on Christmas Day 2014 and will open wide January 9, 2015. Selma garnered four Golden Globe Award nominations, including Best Motion Picture – Drama and Best Director.


Mon Dec 22, 2014 7:19 pm
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Post Re: Selma
I'll give it the benefit of the doubt and give it a higher grade than I was going to for now, even though I can already tell this is going to be a highly overrated movie that gains more appreciation than it probably deserves because of how timely it is. On its own, it's a very good, often great historical drama with a FANTASTIC central performance from David Oyelowo, who deserves an Oscar nomination. There are also a couple of incredibly powerful sequences (the murder of Jimmie Lee Jackson, all of the scenes involving the march - particularly where it turns violent - and a great two-hander between Oyelowo and Carmen Ejojo were my favorite parts), it's well-directed and clearly well-researched, it has strong cinematography. But I thought it fell short of being as powerful as it wants to be. I really don't think anyone in the supporting cast aside from maybe Ejojo deserves awards consideration - they're all fine but mostly underused - and it's mostly because the script doesn't develop them enough. The first half hour is also rather dull though once things get going it definitely improves. And the whole ending montage with the stock footage and the inspirational song, etc. felt to me like this movie was screaming for awards attention. I found this more Oscar-baity than The Imitation Game, personally. 12 Years A Slave was a much more effective and subtly powerful film, and I personally liked The Help quite a great deal more than this as well. Still though, it's very good on its own, it's worth seeing for Oyelowo - who really is brilliant and I'm excited for as this seems to be a breakout role for him - and it's undeniably covering an important time in history. I just wish I was a little more emotionally affected by it. B+


Mon Dec 22, 2014 7:58 pm
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Post Re: Selma
Tessa Thompson has just landed the female lead in Creed, the Rocky spinoff directed by Fruitvale Station‘s Ryan Coogler.

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Thu Dec 25, 2014 6:46 pm
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Post Re: Selma
Ava DuVernay's Selma is powerful, and sometimes agonizingly so. Its passionate, soulful heart beats through every frame, every small moment the picture has to offer. And with the film's release just months after the nation watched what was happening in Ferguson, the subject matter feels timelier than ever. The acting is superb all around, but the lion's share of the credit should go to David Oyelowo. Not only does he look and sound surprisingly like Dr. King, his performance is a remarkable feat of grace and charismatic dignity. This is perhaps the most memorable and astute film produced to date covering the topic of the 1960s civil rights movement, a film not to be missed under any circumstances. A


Mon Dec 29, 2014 11:17 am
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Post Re: Selma
I understand that this is an important time in history but I'm not going to love a movie based on that. I was actually really looking forward to this but I left quite disappointed. Though there are a few powerful scenes scattered throughout it's running time, this is an incredibly dull movie. The lead performance is quite good and like I said, there are a few powerful moments but other than that, there isn't much to love here. The overwhelmingly positive reviews and Oscar buzz baffle me.

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Mon Jan 05, 2015 5:37 pm
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Post Re: Selma
A riveting and sober account of the voting rights marches of 1965, Selma represents a thought-provoking and illuminating piece on the civil rights movement and Martin Luther King. Ava DuVernay expertly handles the multiple threads and characters that make up the film, building up to a crescendo in the final act. Selma is also perfectly cast, from the smallest roles to the lead. David Oyelowo knocks it out of the park. He is simply stunning as Dr. King. In a supporting turn, Carmen Ejogo also shines as his wife. One of the best films of the year. A

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Thu Jan 08, 2015 5:12 pm
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Post Re: Selma
The cast is great, especially David Oyelowo's spot on performance as MLK, but honestly I found it pretty empty for the most part. I understand it's importance with all that's going on today, but if I'm not emotionally invested in a movie than it does nothing for me. Don't get wrong, their are some powerful scenes here and there that deal with the struggles, but they are few and far in-between the movie's drawn out two hour running time. It's atleast better than The Butler which bothered the hell out of me with how cheap it looked, but these black oppression films just don't appeal to me that much anyways.


Fri Jan 09, 2015 4:11 am
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Post Re: Selma
It's honestly a fairly dull movie aside from a few rousing sequences, which is a shame because it had the potential to be really powerful.


Fri Jan 09, 2015 9:41 am
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Post Re: Selma
I thought it was enthralling throughout. The style reminded me in parts of Lincoln and Milk.

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Fri Jan 09, 2015 10:02 am
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Post Re: Selma
I thought this was anything but dull. Its energy leaped off the screen for me.


Fri Jan 09, 2015 11:41 am
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Post Re: Selma
Renton wrote:
I thought it was enthralling throughout. The style reminded me in parts of Lincoln and Milk.


I thought Lincoln was dull too (honestly so much duller than this).


Fri Jan 09, 2015 11:43 am
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Post Re: Selma
In depicting the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., one of the most eminent and lionized of American historical figures, and the events leading to the signing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, director Ava DuVernay's Selma wisely emulates Steven Spielberg's fantastic Lincoln by showing how amber-encased Great Men and Great Moments are born of fiery arguments, ideological compromises, and shrewd political maneuvers. There is a present-tense urgency to the film's depiction of Dr. King and his circle of allies, friends, and in-movement rivals, and though historians have (perhaps justifiable) concerns regarding the portrayal of President Lyndon B. Johnson, the scenes shared by David Oyelowo's squarely focused King and Tom Wilkinson's pragmatic, wary Johnson are dynamic in their contemplation of legacy and responsibility. Despite the admirable lead performances, fascinating ground-level point-of-view, and other qualities, including atmospheric photography, the film is, alas, not entirely without flaws. There are a handful of ham-and-cheese moments. They are recognized easily as thunderous orchestral music signals despair or uplift while characters lapse into purple-prose verbosity and foreshadowing. There are also a few distracting casting decisions in minor roles. I refer here to, say, Martin Sheen (wandering in from a lost episode of The West Wing, authoritative and solemn) or the comic-strip malevolence of Stephen Root as Alabama Department of Public Safety director Al Lingo, but not a low-key and touching Oprah Winfrey as Annie Lee Cooper, a rather more obscure figure from the civil-rights movement.

B+

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Sat Jan 10, 2015 4:47 am
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Post Re: Selma
Oh, and a bit of a superficial gripe: I found it strange how the end credits featured sepia-tinted/B&W production photos of the cast rather than real historical photographs. It seemed to me a bit of an arbitrary and self-congratulatory cap when they could have given audiences a taste of the real faces, sights, and textures of Selma in the 1960s.

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Sat Jan 10, 2015 2:59 pm
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Post Re: Selma
I think it does its job, but not to the degree I hoped for. There are powerful scenes and Oyelowo is very good but half the time the film feels like its lacking something.


Sat Jan 10, 2015 7:43 pm
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Post Re: Selma
SELMA

David Oyelowo gives a memorable performance as MLK. The scenes of him giving speeches in the church or to various crowds was the highlight of the film for me. The film does an excellent job of presenting the 60s era with the look and dialogue. The film works best when dealing strictly with the march activities and interactions with the core group of black leaders in the Civil Rights movement at the time. Where the film loses its way is in the political scenes which I found boring and slow. They really cut the momentum and feel for me. I also found Ribisi to be distractingly miscast. Oprah's few scenes were satisfactory.

Grade B

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Sun Jan 11, 2015 10:20 pm
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Post Re: Selma
I didn't really like the text/what time of day it was when the scenes changed. Like there was a time of day but no date? lol idk I thought it was useless.


Wed Jan 14, 2015 4:12 pm
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Post Re: Selma
You mean the FBI logs? I thought it was a nice flourish, contrasting the fullness and intensity of the events with the dry, detached way the government recorded them.

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Wed Jan 14, 2015 4:13 pm
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Post Re: Selma
Oyelowo is fantastic and DuVernay does a great job behind the camera. It's effective as it should but doesn't go overboard like other biopics tend to do.


Sat Jan 24, 2015 6:11 pm
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Post Re: Selma
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Sun Feb 01, 2015 12:55 pm
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Post Re: Selma
It's eerie how relevant this movie is today, and even more eerie how this isn't that long ago in our history. Things may have changed but not enough.

Anyway, Selma is terrific. David Oyelowo is solid, however I can get why he missed out on Best Actor. His role is less flashy than most of the other nominees, but that's not a bad thing. I do believe he was better than Cooper and Cumberbatch, but his omission doesn't shock me. But a few other notable snubs are definitely shocking now that I've seen it. It's sad more than anything that a lot of what is shown on screen is almost as bad today.

A-

Something mildly amusing: three of the most notable roles of the film (MLK, President Johnson, George Wallace) are played by English actors.

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Sun Feb 08, 2015 5:37 pm
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Post Re: Selma
Powerful with an excellent performance by Oyelowo (how did this dude not get nominated? We could have avoid Moonlight and Green Book if he had won.) Selma does its job, delivers a timeless message and we're all better for it.

One major issue with the movie though: there is only one Character. Every one else is only there to support or antagonize Dr. King, more symbols than people, never once showing any agency of their own.

Still a good watch for historical purposes and powerhouse lead.

B


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