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Title: The Great Debaters
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Let me tell you a story: I have two friends who I meet weekly with and get into various forms of debate. Politics, movies, religion, nothing is sacred. One of the people, lets call him Giuermo, is a fun person to debate with. Some of our recent debates on politics get very interesting. Though fun to debate with, I feel he would be crushed by the debaters found in “The Great Debaters.” If for no other reason then because these debaters are great. Based on a true story, the movie revolves around Melvin B. Tolson (Denzel Washington, who also acts as director), who made history by putting together the first African-American debate team to debate Harvard and win. If that feels like a spoiler, then I’m sorry. I forgot that everyone visiting my site most likely haven’t been watching Oprah lately (who acts as producer here, and is a pretty lousy one considering shes given away every major twist away on her daily TV show).
Oh well, chances are if you saw the previews to this movie, you had that figured out anyway. Though overly sentimental and full of surprises that surprise no one, “The Great Debaters” leaves a mark on you. Not because of great acting, brilliant writing, or memorable characters, but because the debates come off not only as interesting, but challenging. Take for example, the interesting dilemma that is Samantha Brooke (Jurnee Smollett), who is one of the debaters for the black team. She’s pretty of course, and she’s smart, but she’s a woman. A black woman. No woman had ever been on a debating team before, and here is a black one debating a white guy who attends Harvard. If this were TV, they’d say this would make great TV. In the movie though, it makes for great radio. You know, because of the time period, people have radios as opposed to...eh, forget it.
Anyway, there is a scene in the movie where the black team is debating freedom of speech. They pour out emotional responses, and personal experience, only to be shot down by the opposite team for forming an argument that “wasn’t propriety to the subject.” This scene stood out to me because my second friend, let’s call him Mr. C, made a similar mistake in a debate he made at a local college. It’s amazing how close to real life debating this film gets. Though Denzel Washington has been known mainly for his acting ability, he’s been slowly showing the world that he is also a very capable director as well. This is his second directorial film after the excellent “Antwone Fisher.” So far Washington hasn’t demonstrated that he’s much of a stylish director, because anyone could direct this film and have it looking exactly the same.
What Washington can be commended for is picking good subjects to make films out of. I don’t know if Washington is destined to be a great director. Honestly, I’m not entirely convinced this movie is destined for greatness either. Most likely you'll have forgotten most of the movie by the time you reach your car, with only the debates sticking with you. But it’s an honest and good natured film, and there’s nothing wrong with it. It’s touching, fun, and almost instantly forgettable. Yet it shows potential for yet another “pretty boy actor turned director.” And hey, if it leads to more good movies then that's not a bad thing.
- -Review By Kevin T. Rodriguez- -