"The Great Debaters" Shows the Power of Words

Genres: Drama
Running Time: 2 hrs. 3 min.
Release Date: December 25th, 2007 (limited)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for depiction of strong thematic material including violence and disturbing images, and for language and brief sexuality.
Distributors: MGM Distribution Company

Directed by: Denzel Washington

JJ Rating: B+

This is a story about a black college (Wiley College) debate team that goes up against the best white university debate team for the first time. The Great Debaters shows their long hard journey during a time when opinions from anyone with skin that was as dark as the shadows cast by a white man were not requested let alone wanted.

A story that tells of struggle without screaming victim for the characters is a good story indeed. The Great Debaters embodied great story telling. There was no drag time during the movie. There was no me looking at my bright faced phone to see the time annoying other people around me. It had the right pacing and gave the right amount of information to allow understanding of what was going on at all times.

The characters were each their own person. That's a good thing. There was no feeling that the movie would have been better off without mentioning someone else. That's not to say that they should alter true stories to make it more interesting. The truth is always interesting more so than fiction, to me at least. But what the writers and the actors did was give the characters their own soul. It was most refreshing. I didn't expect that it would be anything less. The trailer gave good enough evidence that the movie was going to deliver what it promised.