Had a beautiful experience going out to see Selma on MLK day with wifey. Among others, director Ava Duvernay and star David Oyelowo deserve Oscar nominations, in my humble opinion. But after finally watching the film I have absolutely no trouble understanding why a bunch of old white guys werent going to nominate Selma for more Oscars. It doesnt seem so mysterious at all. The (factual) insinuation made by the film that the U.S. government killed Martin Luther King, Jr. is still (apparently) controversial to some. The notion that there are real-life villains in our nations recent history (Lyndon Johnson and J. Edgar Hoover, among others) whose villainy is on full display in Selma is still (apparently) controversial to some. Herein perhaps lies the most dangerous part about Selma, a film about the civil rights movement directed by a black woman (Ava Duvernay) that unapologetically points fingers at those powerful white people who stood in the way of human progress. I general, I feel that we as white Americans are more comfortable when those kinds of insinuations and portrayals come through the lenses of white filmmakers. We also seem to be more comfortable when discussions about the U.S. racial dictatorship and its white figureheads take place back in slavery times. Django Unchained, for example, for all its guts and gore, is safe on both counts. At the end of the day Django is a fictional story told by a white man that takes place centuries ago. But by that definition, Selma is the opposite of safe. Selma is dangerous because, like Common said in his golden globe acceptance speech, Selma is now. Just my thoughts.
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 19:41:48 +0000
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