Review by David Anthony
While technically a 2014 product, the mid-January release of Ava DuVernay’s Selma coincides with the fiftieth anniversary of the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
As well as chronicling it, the film has already made history as the first film directed by an African-American woman to become a serious contender for major awards.
Selma stars Nigerian-British David Oyelowo as the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., at a pivotal and extremely vulnerable time in his public and private life. While the Civil Rights Movement is struggling in the trenches to implement the halting gains achieved principally in the streets, and most recently to actualize the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Dr. King, its pre-eminent spokesperson is set to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway. Meanwhile, the stress and strain of the movement has invaded every part of the King household. Coretta Scott King, played by Nigerian-Scottish Carmen Ejogo confronts Dr. King about charges of infidelity leaked through FBI wiretaps. The drama, therefore, operates on multiple levels throughout Selma.
Externally, the Selma, Alabama, voting rights campaign is seen unfolding against the backdrop of an intransigent Gov. George C. Wallace, dead set against permitting African-Americans or Negroes or ‘Colored’ folk as they were known at the time from securing the franchise, thusly denying them the most tangible fruit of citizenship. In his corner are both local Selma authorities and State troopers ready willing and able to use violence to prevent black and allied marchers from pushing the envelope.
Dr. King is at the center of many of the conflicts that Selma explores, from the political struggles involving President Lyndon B Johnson and his reliance upon FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, to the local rivalry and tactical internecine feuding between the so-called Young Turks of SNCC, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and an older guard represented by Dr. King and his cohorts of Black, mainly Baptist ministers in SCLC, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Volumes have been written about these days, months and years, and it was a vital part of the Eyes on the Prize PBS broadcasts and accompanying publications. But Selma represents a slice of the larger movement which DuVernay carefully, even meticulously dissects to demonstrate how intricately woven was this tapestry.
Different audiences will likely come away with differing interpretations of this achievement. Writing from the standpoint of an African-American living in a place constantly reminding me of my minority status and at times not seen at all, it was and is affirming to see this tale told, whether or not it gains awards as a film. It is its own reward for viewers of African Descent, even as it reminds us that the struggle continues.
This is David H Anthony.