SELMA

Posted 1/15/15

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(Emotional look back at MLK & Selma march)

We remember it well. Staring at our black and white TV, watching in horror and disgust as the  redneck cops beat the non-violent marchers in …

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SELMA

Posted

* * * *

(Emotional look back at MLK & Selma march)

We remember it well. Staring at our black and white TV, watching in horror and disgust as the  redneck cops beat the non-violent marchers in Selma, Alabama back in the mid-’60s.

The two-hour film centers mostly upon the events leading up to the peaceful demonstrations led by Dr. Martin Luther King, including the differences in strategies, the resistance from men like Governor George Wallace, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover and sheriff Jim Clarke, names that will go down in infamy. The jury is still out on LBJ, whose depiction by Tom Wilkinson is right-on, while historians have raised some questions about the actual events.

Dr. King is portrayed as a troubled soul, not afraid to stand up to the President of the United States while questioning his own decisions along the way. David Oyelowo is terrific as King, silently reflecting on the events and results of his actions and powerful in his speeches. The scenes between Dr. King and President Johnson are powerful, even if their authenticity is in question. It is interesting that King and Johnson are both portrayed by English actors.

It all comes down to the right to vote, depicted poignantly by Oprah Winfrey as a black woman who is turned down by a racist Selma registrar.

This is a movie that will stimulate your emotions and bring back painful memories. It is also a must-see for young people who are too young to have witnessed the events on TV.

While we usually don’t pay much attention to or give credit to the sound engineers, we winced at the horrible sounds of the police striking the marchers, black and white, with their billy clubs and other objects.

“Negotitate, Demonstrate and Resist” was the game plan, one not so different than the events we watch today on our color TVs. They say that history does often repeat itself. Watching “Selma” makes us wonder why we never learn from it.

Rated PG-13, with violence and some profanity.

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