Selma has received lots of praise and yesterday evening I was planning on doing some work on my computer while watching the film Selma in the background. My plan did not succeed, because no matter how much I wanted to work while watching Selma, I simply failed! Selma was a film that just needed my attention and I wanted to pay attention to it! Here are my thoughts in this little Selma (2014) review.
Selma tells us the story of Martin Luther King and his job that was done in Selma which paved the way for giving Negroes the right to vote in the United States. In a way they did have the right to vote earlier, but voting was made impossible for them, and thus Martin Luther King made this his number one goal to make sure that Negroes all around the United States would get full rights to vote, and for a city like Selma in which more than 50% of the population were black, that was very much needed.
It was both amazing and challenging to watch Selma. It was amazing to see how Martin Luther King fought for a case that he felt it was worth actually dying for. It was amazing to see how he did not give up, how he got strength from the Lord and how important it was for him to be surrounded by people who encouraged him, gave him strength and lifted him up on days in which he felt as if life was a struggle and on days when he felt weak and tired.
It was challenging to see how brutal human kind can be and how disgusting it is to see when people feel superior to other people, exactly like them, just with a different color on their skin. It was really painful to watch how people were killed fighting (without violence) for a cause in which they believed, and how the blood of those “saints” did not pour in vain. It was a high price to pay, but looking back it was still worth it.
I recently watched Star Wars 7 and I really enjoyed the film. But, it was a film and it is a film that did not give me something as a human being. It did not challenge me and it did not stir up anything in my heart. Watching Selma was a completely different experience. After watching such a film it is almost hard falling asleep, because you just sit with so many feelings, thoughts and prayers in your heart.
Some people have said that David Oyelowo who played Martin Luther King in the film would have deserved an Oscar for his role. I am not sure about that, maybe he would, but what I can say for sure is that he does an awesome job playing Martin Luther King and listening to him as he does the speeches made by Martin Luther King makes one really impressed and if Martin Luther King could preach half as good as David Oyelowo does in this film playing Martin Luther King, then it must have been amazing to listen to him!
In other words, if you want to watch a film that has something to say, a film that will move you, a film that will make you maybe cry, a film that will stir up your heart and a film that will give you some insight into the battles the Negroes went through in the 60s in the United States, then Selma is the film to watch!
You can watch Selma on Netflix and on Amazon.com, or you can probably buy it on your local video store or your own preferred Internet video store.
Have you seen Selma? Did you like it as much as I did?
