THE GREAT DEBATER : A MESSAGE OF RACIAL OPPRESSION “ The Great Debaters” , which was both directed by and starred , Denzel Washington, as Melvin. I Tolson, English and Speech Professor of Wiley College and Union Activist. The story is based on the true event of the undefeated 1935 debate team. The film depicted the segregation and racism faced by the black people when the racism was at its peak, they did not have to offend before they were arrested, some of them had parts of their bodies lynched without cause, worse still, some were roasted alive. The students of Wiley college which represented the Negroes fought for their freedom through debates. Basically, this film follows the ABC form as it unfolded in chronological order, the ending of this film shows the important of fighting through every phase of life until the fight is won which presented by Washington when the Wiley College debate team defeated the Harvard team which is the national champion. The conflict of this film also developed in time, it started only by the normal discrimination faced by the black people such as segregated education institution and in daily life, but as the story grows the we can see the discrimination faced by them getting intense. The …show more content…
Denzel Washington, and Nate Parker gave stout yet passionate performances in their juke joint meeting and at their after school meeting. In the Juke Joint scene all the right elements were there to produce the impending disaster and the element of surprise took the strength of the element of disaster away. it begs the contrary of a typical movie opening. Usually in most movies its the disaster that fuels the rest of the story. Here the Mise en Scene is set to simply inspire to
This movie concentrates more on the freedom of mind and perception that not unless the black people liberate themselves from their way of thinking, the unrelenting forces of backwardness and poverty will always follow them.
The movie starts with the story of Rubin Carter and his fight for the middleweight championship. He lost the match in a rigged bout to a weaker opponent. Although, Rubin dominated the ring, he lost the title. The fight foreshadows the racial discrimination that will be played throughout the movie. Later in the movie in the Lafayette Grill two African-American males of middle build murdered three people at the all white establishment. Rubin Carter and John Artis were accused of being those two men. Carter and Artis went to prison for three life sentences. The future looks slim for Carter, however, a pivotal change comes when Lezra Martin discovers Carter's book.
...ferred to comes at the end of the film, when a black student Danny had previously encountered and angered shoots him repeatedly. Derek, making a visit to the school, runs in to find that his worst nightmare had come true. His brother was dead, due to racist actions, and his life and the lives of his family will be changed forever for it.
The school's English professor, Melvin Tolson (Denzel Washington), is a taskmaster who demands the highest standards from his debate team, and they're rewarded with a national championship. That's what the "sports movie" is about, but the movie is about so much more, and in ways that do not follow
This movie is shooted in 1930s when racial conflict was at its peak. This shows the scene when Dr James hits accidently to a wild pig which belongs to white people, and was charged and humilatd by them. Melvin was secretly helding the meetings between poor white and black peoples to unite them due to which an incident happened during a meeting in which they were attacked by the sheriff and his crew. The major events of this movie includes preparations to compete in the debate competitions and minor event includes the racial conflicts. Their main mission was to be selected by Harvard university for debate and won a prize, but they were afraid to compete because they were black.mr.
The Great Debater is a fascinating movie that teaches people about confidence and courage. It is based on a true story during the 1930s where one English professor inspired students to build the first debate team. The plot revolves around the debate coach Melvin Tolson who put all his efforts in hopes of putting the debate team of Wiley College at the same status as the whites in Texas. At this point in history, the Negros were considered to be at the bottom of the social hierarchy while the whites graced the top. There was no equality at this time which drove this particular debate team of Wiley College into a state of determination to win.