Selma

The 2014 film Selma is an American historical-drama that follows Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s (David Oyelowo) attempt to desegregate an Alabaman town in the year 1965. Directed by Ava Duvernay, this film mainly follows the struggles of the citizens of Selma, Alabama while they struggle to persuade President Lyndon B. Johnson(Tom Wilkinson) to sign the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

While historical dramas are not usually my favorite type of film to watch, I decided to see this one as a token to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day and I came away with mixed opinions. Possibly the most compelling aspect of the movie was that David Oyelowo gave an extremely convincing performance of Martin Luther King Jr. Oyelowo had an excellent cadence and power behind his speech that near perfectly matched the recorded speeches I have seen of King himself. Sadly, I believe that his performance overshadowed the rest of the characters in the movie. In the film many of King's compatriots were meant to act in supporting and guiding factors for King; however their lack of character development and importance left me yearning for more.

The most attention grabbing scene in this movie has to, by far, be the opening. The film opens with a group of small African American children walking down the stairs in a church after a Sunday School class. The tone is quickly set as relaxed and slightly playful; however the scene erupts into chaos as the side of the church unexpectedly explodes. There were no hints towards this race crime happening, making it unexpected and slightly frightening. Known as the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing this violent change of pace caught me by surprise and grabbed my full attention.

While I think that the jump scare at the beginning of the film was a smart tactic to get viewers watching it may have overall worked against the film. I believe the opening scene picked up the pace too quickly, leaving most of the remainder of the film to seem slow.

Overall I believe that this film was not bad. It was shot well, the cast was fairly strong, and it effectively displayed a very important point in the Civil Rights Movement. I would not say that this is the greatest film of 2014 even though it does a great job at making audience members think "I can't believe this really happened." I would grade it a 6/10.

Gladiator

Gladiator is a movie set during the Roman Empire starring Russell Crowe.  It is a beautiful epic that tells a fantastic story and leads the view through an amazing journey through the brutality of Ancient Rome.  What I love about Gladiator is how beautiful each scene looks and how grand each scene is.  The opening scene of Gladiator shows the Roman army about to take on barbarians.  The scene is beautiful, there is a light snow as the army ready for battle.  Russell Crowe leads them in the charge and sure enough the romans over power the Barbarians.

Part of the reason I am such a fan of gladiator is that I am a big fan of Roman history and I love watching epics, so this suits me quite perfectly.  After this battle the emperor comes to visit and tells him (Russell Crowe) that he is to become emperor after him instead of his son (Joaquin Phoenix).  Well his son finds out about this and after his father's death he attempts to kill Russell Crowe.  Though Russell Crowe escapes and this is where the story really starts.  He becomes a slave and then he is forced to fight as a Gladiator.  These scenes look stunning and the arena is amazing.  Every arena battle is amazing and very well done.  One of his early gladiator fights leads Russell Crowe to say the now famous line "Are you not entertained"

Gladiator is a must watch for anyone and especially anyone who likes Russell Crowe or Ridley Scott.  You will be taken on a fantastic journey that will have you wanting to find out what happens next at every moment.  Luckily for me I have the extended edition so I can watch it over and over.  If you want a glimpse here it is.