3.5 stars (out of four)
Movies about issue-driven true stories get a lot of awards attention no matter their quality. In 2013, "Lee Daniels' The Butler" carried with it a certain amount of expectation, as it dealt with race in the U.S. and featured big names as both unknown heroes and major political figures. Never mind that the film was like a civil rights movement greatest hits that also shamefully changed the real story (for example, killing off the main character's son for dramatic effect).
"Selma," though, justifies its buzz. Yes, it's a movie about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) advocating to President Johnson (Tom Wilkinson) for legislation to protect voting rights and leading a non-violent protest in 1965 Selma, Ala. (Coincidentally, Oyelowo's character attended the march in "The Butler," which Daniels made after dropping out of "Selma.") But this isn't a preachy movie that ends with a triumph that makes it seem like race relations were perfect from then on. This is a story of a selfless leader's sincere, unyielding authority, and the courage to demand not just policy but "the resolute enforcement of that protocol." The relevance to recent and future incidents of allegedly racially-motivated violence couldn't be clearer, and the movie trusts viewers to make the connection.
In a performance that will change his career, Oyelowo ("Interstellar,""A Most Violent Year") is incredibly commanding but never turns Dr. King into an exaggerated, superhuman martyr. The supporting cast (including Carmen Ejogo, Tim Roth, Oprah Winfrey, Common and Dylan Baker) enhances the effort of making reality feel real, whether the actor is playing someone you've heard of or not.
At times there's a sense of "Selma" packing in relevant real-life participants it doesn't have time to properly address; you recognize faces on the fringes without quite knowing their value. In a movie so focused on a mission the details of the central character can get lost, and I can't help but feel director Ava DuVernay and first-time writer Paul Webb fumble with Dr. King's personal life and the context necessary to establish his place in the movement.
Yet this is a film of great power and integrity, fiercely attentive to the tipping point of progress and the difficult decisions that push it forward. It's firm as a fist and unwavering as the person determined not to use it as a weapon.
Watch Matt review the week's big new movies Fridays at 11:30 a.m. on NBC.
mpais@tribune.com
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