Selma (2014)

My Review

“Selma” is a historical drama detailing Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1965 campaign to obtain equal voting rights for Blacks in the Deep South, culminating in the march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. Director Ava DuVernay (“Middle of Nowhere” 2012) put together a high quality dramatization of one of the key events of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960’s. The film contains good production values, top-notch performances, and a superb screenplay by Paul Webb.

The stars of the show include David Oyelowo as Dr. King, Tom Wilkinson as President Lyndon Johnson, Carmen Ejogo as Coretta Scott King, Andre Holland as Andrew Young, Tim Roth as George Wallace, Giovanni Ribisi as Johnson’s aide, Common as Rev. James Bevel, Cuba Gooding Jr. as attorney Fred Gray, Dylan Baker as J. Edgar Hoover, Stephen Root as the head of the state troopers, Nigel Thatch as Malcolm X, Martin Sheen as Judge Johnson, and Oprah Winfrey as an activist.

The very watchable “Selma” was a hit at the box office for producers Oprah Winfrey and Brad Pitt, Pathe Films, Cloud Eight Films, Ingenious Media, Harpo Films, Plan B Entertainment, and Paramount Pictures. It won a single Oscar for Best Original Song “Glory” by John Legend and Common. There was one other Academy Award nomination for Best Picture. “Selma” was filmed in various locations in the state of Georgia.