Movie Review: The Butler

In honor of Oscar Night, I decided to write a short review of a movie that unfortunately got the shaft and was not nominated for anything, but truly deserved some recognition. The Butler is a period piece, telling the true story of an African American man who has served 8 American presidents over three decades. It is a story of the fight for civil rights, and it tells its story with passion and sincerity, emotionally grabbing you with some phenomenal characters. Forest Whitaker plays Cecil Gaines, the man who was a butler for the White House for thirty years, and plays his role as a wise pacifist really well, but isn't afraid to challenge racism by not going to violent measures. Oprah Winfrey plays his wife, who at times is supportive and other times seems like a very lonely woman due to her husband's absence while he's working in the White House. The other actors and actresses play their parts well, and every character is believable in their respective roles. As for the story, it's kind of slow, especially if you're more of a story-oriented person. This movie is reliant on good performances by the characters, because if the acting had turned out to be bad in this movie, it would have failed dramatically. But, even though the story isn't the strongest, it was still interesting to see how each historical event and figure played into the story a, like the assassination of John F. Kennedy to Martin Luther King. Finally, the presentation was rather average. The cinematography and the camera angles were well-done and you could tell that this was made by a capable director (Lee Daniels), but it isn't anything groundbreaking. Overall, I give The Butler a 4 out of 5, and a recommendation to watch it, especially if you love history. It's a great movie with well-written and developed characters, and I'm sure that moviegoers were pretty shocked to learn that this movie didn't get nominated for anything. But, like always, it is up to you to decide your own opinion.