Loving V. Virginia

Loving is the 2016 drama film directed by Jeff Nichols, who adapts the story of the Lovings, marriage that formed part of the Supreme Court Case Loving v. Virginia, which abdicated for interracial marriage—at the time illegal in Virginia as well as states of the country—. The movie is set in the late 50’s and place in Caroline, Virginia, where couple conformed by Mildred, an African-American woman, and Richard Loving, a white countryman first faced the juridical consequences of their marriage, legally approved and realized in Washington, D.C. Years later after being forced to leave the state, the Lovings wrote a letter to the senator Robert F. Kennedy for help, but since he can’t be useful, he passed the case to the American Civil Liberties

He worked building houses and lived a modest life, since he wasn’t an influential figure for the county, but had the luck to be a white man, and at the time that was at least an advantage. However, even though he somehow could have enjoyed the perks that being white, he felt the liberty of breaking the social rules that were edified by discrimination. He was disposed to pay the price of ignoring his “privileges” by marrying a black woman, because he didn’t understand why had to be a price to pay in the first place. Additionally, because he wasn’t highly educated and didn’t come from a prestigious family, the police had no delicacy while intruding in their house to arrest them. On the contrary, Mildred, an African-American woman who worked sewing at home, had a lot more struggles living in that same place. She was in disadvantage because apart from being black, she was a woman, and she was poor. Her status didn’t bring her the respect from others, apart from her family and Richard, that learned to live in such conditions. She loved Richard, and wasn’t discouraged of being with him even when the same few people from the county judged their relationship. Seemingly, the decisions that Mildred and Richard took were always for the best for both of them, no matter how many forces tried to separate

Nichols’ personal, as well as professional interest were essential for the production, because it was that what drove him to take the lead to shoot such an inspiring movie. It’s then where elements like personality, profession, nationality, spiritual beliefs, and ethnicity form part of the movie. In the same way, the director’s bias isn’t the only present in the 2016 film. It is evident that the actors are implicated too, since civil rights are an issue that concern everyone. It seems that promoting the awareness of events from the past was what made them want to be part of the movie, because honoring their heritage was a key to their moving performance, which helped our understanding of the movie and the story as a