***Spoiler Alert***
The film opens up with Cecil as a young boy. He is picking cotton in the fields alongside his dad. It is mid 1920s and we are still in the age of slavery. His mom is also a slave and is soon whisked away by the plantation owner for a rendezvous in the shed. Cecil pushes his dad to do something about this occurrence, and when the father acts, the owner shoots him dead. The old woman who is also an owner of the plantation, takes Cecil and trains him to become her butler. When Cecil grows older and slavery truly becomes obsolete, he leaves the plantation and strives to become his own man.
Since serving is all he knows, Cecil gets a job at a local restaurant/hotel, and is mentored by the senior butler. He grows into a great butler and eventually gets a job at the luxurious Excelsior in D.C. A White House representative is at the hotel one night and spots Cecil. Impressed with Cecil's work ethics, he recruits him to become one of the White House's distinguished butlers. And so it begins...
The film brings us into the world of civil rights through the perspective of one man. Even though he did not have any direct say in the movement, his service and relationship with all the presidents paved the way in how African American people were treated. In the beginning, we see Cecil and his family struggle with prejudice and segregation. However, as the years progress, his family seems to find it easier to live life to the fullest. Cecil's relationship with the president seems to grow more in depth as time goes on. We only see a few interactions that are more professional between him and the first president, Dwight Eisenhower. On the other hand, Cecil has almost a solid friendship with the last president he serves, Ronald Reagan.
Each actor delivers a stunning performance and never once does one outshine the other. With an all-star cast, you sometimes fall into the trap of them trying to take the scene. Forest Whitaker did an amazing job since he had the most emotional role to play. He is trying to protect his family and provide for them all while keeping his nose clean as the White House butler. He can't control his son's actions as a member of the Black Panther Party, but does all that he can to preserve the innocent foundation he built on his family's name. You can see that this character wants to take action and deep down strives to rebel like his son. However, he remembers that fateful day when his dad took action and died for it. As the film progresses, you watch this character go through several emotions and can't help but understand his conflict.
Opera Winfrey does an amazing job playing Cecil's wife. I don't think it's enough to get the oscar, but she certainly knew how to own a scene. Major kudos to the make up team for making each actor look like their respective presidents. I must say that Alan Rickman made a great Reagan. He was by far my favorite with James Marsden just second by a margin as JFK.
Overall, I thought the film was great. It flowed very well and never did I get bored. It is a film you have to concentrate since the timeline is very long and there is so much to cover in 2 hours. But I appreciate the intensity and authenticity of the events that are portrayed throughout the film. It really gave you a fond understanding and appreciation for the history and milestone that was civil rights.
I definitely suggest seeing this film. I feel you would enjoy it as much as I did.
My Rating: A
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