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2013 Director: Lee Daniels
2013 Director: Lee Daniels
The Butler is exactly what you would expect from a broad biopic that scales across not just years but decades. You will more than likely run the gamut of emotions. There is humor, sadness, and melodrama. Most of the emotion that Daniels is trying to evoke is earned, some is not. Despite all that what struck me the most while watching The Butler was just how thrilled I was to be sitting in a theater watching a film that cared about the narrative and its characters. I feel like The Butler has started off the fall season and that could not thrill me more.
The Butler is a simple but extraordinary story. After seeing his father killed in cold blood by the plantation owners son he is brought into the home to learn to be a butler. Soon he has to leave the plantation but his skills serve him well in finding a new job. When he receives an invite to become a butler at the White House his amazing adult journey begins. He serves under eight presidents, and while we get a glimpse into many aspects of American culture during each one the stories main focus is on civil rights. The Butler has two sons, one who becomes extremely active in civil rights activism. Much of what he does is disapproved of by his father and this is where the majority of the films conflict comes from. However next to Whitaker's butler, in my opinion the most interesting character is his wife played by Oprah. The couple survives some truly tumultuous circumstances and I would have enjoyed to see this explored more deeply. There is simply not enough time to delve deeply into every character which is usually the issue with a film that covers so much time and it is no different with The Butler. Whitaker and Winfrey make the most of every single scene together though, they work perfectly together and are giving A+ performances. It is especially great to see Whitaker back in top form, it seems to me that he has been settling for many lesser films over the past few years.
I recommend reading up a little on the true events of this man after seeing the film. I won't comment on those things here for fear of ruining the experience of the film. I do have some thoughts that would be interested to share with anyone who has seen the film. Sometimes I think that film makers take too many liberties with true stories, Argo anyone, but other times I have no issue with it and that is the case here. There is a major discrepancy but after dwelling on the film I think I understand why Daniels chose to do what he did. I believe that it made for an interesting exploration into the butler's psyche and thus was warranted.
The Butler is by no means a perfect film but is an above average bio-pic and more than worth your time.
The Butler is a simple but extraordinary story. After seeing his father killed in cold blood by the plantation owners son he is brought into the home to learn to be a butler. Soon he has to leave the plantation but his skills serve him well in finding a new job. When he receives an invite to become a butler at the White House his amazing adult journey begins. He serves under eight presidents, and while we get a glimpse into many aspects of American culture during each one the stories main focus is on civil rights. The Butler has two sons, one who becomes extremely active in civil rights activism. Much of what he does is disapproved of by his father and this is where the majority of the films conflict comes from. However next to Whitaker's butler, in my opinion the most interesting character is his wife played by Oprah. The couple survives some truly tumultuous circumstances and I would have enjoyed to see this explored more deeply. There is simply not enough time to delve deeply into every character which is usually the issue with a film that covers so much time and it is no different with The Butler. Whitaker and Winfrey make the most of every single scene together though, they work perfectly together and are giving A+ performances. It is especially great to see Whitaker back in top form, it seems to me that he has been settling for many lesser films over the past few years.
I recommend reading up a little on the true events of this man after seeing the film. I won't comment on those things here for fear of ruining the experience of the film. I do have some thoughts that would be interested to share with anyone who has seen the film. Sometimes I think that film makers take too many liberties with true stories, Argo anyone, but other times I have no issue with it and that is the case here. There is a major discrepancy but after dwelling on the film I think I understand why Daniels chose to do what he did. I believe that it made for an interesting exploration into the butler's psyche and thus was warranted.
The Butler is by no means a perfect film but is an above average bio-pic and more than worth your time.