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List Price: $14.95 | | Label: Genius Products (TVN)
Salesrank: 4287
Released: May 13, 2008 |
| Our Price: $2.99 |
| Used Price: $2.47 |
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MPAA Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Two-time Academy Award® winner Denzel Washington (American Gangster) directs and stars with Academy Award® winner Forest Whitaker (Last King of Scotland) in this important and deeply inspiring page from the not-so-distant past (Richard Roeper, At the Movies with Ebert and Roeper). Inspired by a true story, Washington shines as a brilliant but politically radical debate team coach who uses the power of words to transform a group of underdog African American college students into an historical powerhouse that took on the Harvard elite. DVD Special Features:
Deleted Scenes
The Great Debaters: An Historical Perspective. That's What My Baby Likes; Music Video.
My Soul Is A Witness; Music Video
Theatrical Trailer
Sneak Peeks: Grace is Gone, Cassandra's Dream, I'm Not There, Hunting Party
Description of The Great Debaters:
Inspired by real events, the fascinating The Great Debaters reveals one of the seeds of the Civil Rights Movement in its story of Melvin B. Tolson (Denzel Washington in a captivating performance) and his champion 1935 debate club from the all-African-American Wiley College in Texas. Tolson, a Wiley professor, labor organizer, modernist poet, and much else, runs a rigorous debate program at the school, selecting four students as his team in ’35, among them the future founder of the Congress of Racial Equality, James Farmer Jr. (Denzel Whitaker). Washington, who directed The Great Debaters from a script by Robert Eisele (The Dale Earnhardt Story), anchors the story with the team’s measurable progress, but the film is also about the state of race relations in America at the height of the Great Depression. With lynchings of black men and women a common form of entertainment and black subjugation for many rural whites, the idea of talented and highly intelligent African-American young people learning to think on their feet during debates would seem almost a hopeless endeavor. But that’s not the way Tolson sees it, as his students serve themselves and the cause of racial equality in America with energetic arguments in favor of progressive government and non-violence as a viable social movement. There are some startling moments in this movie, particularly the sight of a man found lynched and burned to death, and an extraordinary moment in which we see black sharecroppers and white farmers engaged with Tolson in arguments about unionizing together. Forest Whitaker is outstanding as Farmer’s emotionally-reserved father, also a Wiley professor. This is the kind of film where one hopes two great actors such as the elder Whitaker and Washington will have a scene together, and when it comes it’s as powerful as one might hope. --Tom Keogh
The Great Debaters Reviews:
Excellent movie 
2009-12-23 - This movie is an excellent depiction of some of the atrocities that occurred in the south during the last century. Denzel Washington, Forest Whittaker and a crew of young actors provide an engrossing perspective of the injustices that occurred in the "Old South" and how their courage and inspiration drawn from their purpose helped them overcome Jim Crow society.
The origins of the civil rights movement
2009-11-12 - The Great Debaters is a wonderfully acted, well produced film about the first college debate between a black team, Wiley College, and a white team. (In the movie, the white team is Harvard, but in fact it was USC.) The plot of the movie revolves around the struggles of the debating team to achieve recognition during an era in which civil rights were a mere glimmer on their progenitors' eyes. (Not surprisingly, several of those progenitors were members of the debating team.) The outcome is predictable, so in that sense, this is a "feel-good" film. But the purpose of the film wasn't just to make us root for the underdog. The Great Debaters was clearly intended as a vehicle to portray the origins of the civil rights movement.
The movie makes some departures from historical events, but these were not of a nature to detract from the story. Where the final debate took place is not particularly important. What is important is that the film accurately depicted the hurdles faced by the black community in the 1930s. This was an era in which "justice" was often administered at the end of a rope, and in which being black was a crime in and of itself. The horrifying scene in which James Farmer, Jr. (who eventually became one of the "Big Four" of the civil rights movement), witnesses a lynching encapsulated the purpose of this film, which was to explain the need for civil rights. The debates, themselves, while probably departing significantly from the originals, served to present the arguments used by later civil rights advocates, notably Martin Luther King, Jr.
Unlike many films based on "true stories" the Great Debaters tackled the larger social issues of the times. Because these issues--the rights of minorities, the rule of law, constitutional authority--are still pertinent, still subject to heated discussion, and still worthy of our undivided attention, the great debate continues.
Great Movie
2009-10-03 - Showed this to a high school debate class. It really got the kids fired up about the passion the characters had for the art of debating. Another great acting role for Denzil Washington. I give this movie 5 stars for great entertainment.
Multi-Layered- More Than Your Average Inspriational Movie 
2009-08-17 - I love me some Denzel. Have for quite sometime now. I generally catch every one of his movies at some point- and that's saying something as prolific an actor he is. But I've learned one thing about me and Denzel. I don't like him as a bad guy. I wanted to cry after watching the movie Training Day. Lately he's been playing far too many of these anti-hero type roles.
So when I saw The Great Debaters being hyped by Oprah- she produced it and he directed it- I was more than pleased. FINALLY another Denzel movie I can't wait to watch, despite the fact I just knew it was going to be yet another underdog-succeeds-with -inspiration- from- teacher- despite-everyone's-expections-otherwise-Huzzah-For-Our-Team, feel good kinda movie.
Of course it was just that and, did I mention, OPRAH PRODUCED IT?
But it was also much, much more.
The story starts out with some seemingly incongruous shots that make you question what exactly you're seeing. But it all blends together so perfectly, cinematogrophly we get a tiny snapshot of the Black experience of the 1930's all within the first five minutes.
It's here we meet for the first time several of our protagonists. One being Melvin B. Tolson (Denzel Washington) an all Black College professor who has just run through the woods, seemingly for his life. We also meet two students, one in church, the other at a gin joint, who will soon make up part of the debate team Tolson leads at Wiley College.
The other two are chosen from a tryout held at Tolson's house, and one just happens to be a, *gasp*, woman!
Tolson meets Henry Lowe (Nate Parker), a beautiful young man who has a penchant for reading- and getting into trouble, outside a that gin joint I mentioned earlier, deep in the woods. After saving him from a grave mistake, Tolson immediately recognizes someing raw in Lowe and recruits him. He also picks the young man we saw sitting in church, James Farmer Jr. (Denzel Whitaker- hmmm wonder who he's named after??,) whose father is played by another Oscar winner, Forest Whitaker- no relation as far as I can tell.
James Jr. is the youngest on the team- heck he's the youngest at Wiley College too. He's only fourteen, but oh does he have heart. He's also the one who quietly steals the movie right out from under those Oscar winners' feet!
Add to that the young lady and one young man from last year's team and Tolson's set to lead them to victory.
The crux of the movie is indeed the underdog theme I mentioned earlier. (Once the team gets started, they make win after win until invitations to debate far outside their regular sphere start rolling in.)
But what makes this movie good are a couple more layers I wasn't expecting.
They're living in Texas. In 1935. Jim Crow anyone? We watch as each character deals with life in that kind of afflicting atmosphere and I was amazed at how well these incidents were artfully woven into the tale and how it shaped them all- as well as the story!
Tolson, is not exactly all he seems, hence the running through the woods. But neither are any of the characters here either. There are so many moving moments in this film, I can't begin to recount them all. Some very uplifting, others- textured with something much deeper. Suffice to say the team does make it beyond Marshell Texas- to Harvard even!- and the journey there probably taught them more than the destination.
Really recommend this movie if your in the mood for something inspirational AND sobering. Be prepared to hear some over-reaching preaching, and the hammering home of this one fact, to quote a quoted line in the film, "An unjust law is no law at all."
Rent it. Buy it.
2009-07-21 - The Great Debaters is a fine film and I recommend it. It has fiber, moral fiber, and lots of it. The Amazon review contains the structure of the movie. And I don't have anything original to say except that I think you should get it, watch it, and let the film's magic unfold in front of you. You won't be disappointed.
