"Debaters" is Debatable For Me....

OK, this is a repost of "Yawn" (with an addendum), a ditty I wrote back in June (yes, your Black Cinemist is always on top of it) on "The Great Debaters":

Oprah Winfrey is set to produce "The Great Debaters" directed by and starring Denzel Washington. Now before you panic, this isn't Winfrey's first time producing. She's produced a number of films to include Their Eyes Were Watching God, Halle Berry's project for ABC, a few years back. The movie is based on the true story of an underdog debate team that went on to beat Harvard's team.

As for Washington, this is his second directorial job following the 2002 film Antoine Fisher, in which he also served as one of the producers. Written by Robert Eisele and Suzan-Lori Parks, The Great Debaters is based on a true story of Melvin B. Tolson. As a professor at Wiley College in East Texas, he has been inspires by his students to create the college’s first debating team, which successfully conquered Harvard in the national championships.

"The Great Debaters", features Washington as Mel Tolson, along with other cast members such as Jermaine Williams as Hamilton Burgess, Nate Parker as Henry Lowe, J.D. Evermore as Captain Wainwright, Justice Leak as Harland Osbourne, Breon Pugh as Wiley Student, Charissa Allen as Benita, and Robert X. Golphin as Dunbar Reed among others.

From Invisible Woman: Sorry, but as Homer Simpson would say.... booorrrriiiing. I have as much patience for these Stand and Deliver/Dangerous Minds/Freedom Writers/Whatever That Movie Terrance Howard Was In movies as I do TV remakes. NEWS FLASH! When inner city kids are given the same resources, materials, attention, focus, and opportunities as "suburban" or private schools, guess what? They can excel JUST LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE! Hollywood (Oprah and Denzel included) can we get a movie with some risky/dark/interesting/sexy subject matter? I'm just sayin'.....

I.W. 12/18: OK, maybe I rushed to judgement on that, but 6 months later, I still don't want to see that ish. Yeah, I said it. So, I'll give love to D. Yobachi Boswell, who wrote about it on his blog "Black Perspective":

The Great Debaters--By D. Yobachi Boswell

Is the Great Debaters another in a long line of Lean On Me wanna-be movies gone bad? Mmmm, probably not. For one it takes place 70 years ago, so you don’t have the cliché’ ‘gang riddled school with graffiti tatted walls’ thing going. Also unlike all the ‘teacher rescues the natives’ movies we’ve been cursed with since Lean On Me starring Morgan Freeman as our protagonist and Stand And Deliver starring Edwards James Olmos in the position of youth inspirer; we don’t have the great white hope condescension of some do-gooder whitey coming from outside to save the Blacks and Hispanics.

Here the protagonist is played by Denzel Washington, and as he is, his students are Black. He comes from their community. Furthermore, these aren’t wayward young folks, looking to run the streets, who’s parents don’t understand the importance of education; where the protagonist must bring them along. These are Black college students in the 1930s; they really choose to be there. From what I’m reading this film leans more Dead Poets Society than Dangerous Minds.

And good. I’m from Hip Hop and I could do without the pimped out low riders and 2 hours filled with “ya know what I’m saying” for once.

There’s a decent review of the movie here .

The film is the second directed by Denzel Washington, following Antwone Fisher, and also stars Forrest Whitaker and a grow up Jurnee Smollett who you might remember as Eve in Eve’s Bayou.

I don’t know if it’s a good movie quality wise, I haven’t seen it; but it seems like worth giving a chance at least as much as the numerous crappy movies made by white people that we flock to spend our money on; and then complain about how we get no love in the movies.

You vote with your dollars baby.

The film opens on Christmas.