Image courtesy of: tumblr.com (fair use)

KiaLynne Bland

    Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was the country’s most recent holiday, so it would only make sense to see Selma, which was released worldwide Jan. 9, 2014. The movie was nominated for an Academy Award, Golden Globe, N.A.A.C.P Image Award, and Satellite Award, just to name a few.

Based on a true story, Selma, starring David Oyelowo, Tom Wilkinson, Carmen Ejogo, Tim Roth, and Oprah Winfrey, follows Martin Luther King, Jr. (Oyelowo) lead a dangerous and risky, but nonviolent march from Selma, Ala. to Montgomery, Ala. in 1965 to promote and secure equal voting rights across the United States. Throughout the movie, King repeatedly goes to President Lyndon B. Johnson (Wilkinson) to discuss the issues of African Americans not being authorized to vote. However, Johnson was more concerned with trying to end poverty throughout the country instead of King’s concerns, which lead up to the march.

Various scenes of the movie left me in tears and sickened me, as Selma does an excellent job with portraying how African Americans and Civil Rights activists were treated during the 1960s, previous, and coming years. Many scenes were unappealing to the eye, but extremely important to acknowledge and understand.

Selma maintains positive reviews, with IMDb giving it a 7.5 out of 10 rating, Rotten Tomatoes an 8.7 out of 10 rating, and Metacritic an 89 out of 100. Several movie critics have praised Selma of its powerful acting; I agree with them. Each individual actor and actress had their moment, and it was always a strong moment. From the violent scenes, to the glorifying scenes, the acting overall gave me chills and inspired me.