Selma

Theatrical Release Date: 2014 12 25 (USA - Limited) / 2015 01 09 (USA)

UPC: 032429212115

Studio: Paramount

MPAA Rating: PG13   Contains:[Violence, Adult Situations, Profanity]

Summary: David Oyelowo stars as Martin Luther King Jr. in this historical drama set during the height of the American civil-rights movement, and depicting the marches from Selma, AL, to the state capital of Montgomery to secure voting rights for black people. Brad Pitt and Oprah Winfrey produce and Ava DuVernay (I Will Follow, Middle of Nowhere) directs. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Category: Drama

Awards: Freedom of Expression Award – National Board of Review New Generation Award – Los Angeles Film Critics Association Best Picture - Drama – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Director – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Male Lead – Independent Spirit Awards Best Supporting Actress – Independent Spirit Awards Best Director – Independent Spirit Awards Best Cinematography – Independent Spirit Awards Best Animated Feature – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Original Song – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Picture – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Picture – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Picture – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Picture – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Original Song – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Original Song – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Features: cc
Selma student tickets: donor appreciation
National Voting Rights Museum and Institute

Selma

Format: DVD

Release Date: 05/05/2015

Audio: DD5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1, DD2 Dolby Digital Stereo

Runtime: 128 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French

Subtitles: English,French,Spanish

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Disc #1 -- Selma
1. Chapter 1 [9:18]
2. Chapter 2 [4:14]
3. Chapter 3 [3:51]
4. Chapter 4 [8:22]
5. Chapter 5 [6:48]
6. Chapter 6 [12:50]
7. Chapter 7 [10:57]
8. Chapter 8 [14:07]
9. Chapter 9 [9:14]
10. Chapter 10 [5:53]
11. Chapter 11 [7:49]
12. Chapter 12 [8:16]
13. Chapter 13 [7:06]
14. Chapter 14 [4:37]
15. Chapter 15 [6:19]
16. Chapter 16 [8:20]

Perry Seibert

More often than not, cradle-to-the-grave biopics are sprawling movies that lack focus and end up doing a disservice to the importance of their subjects. Ava DuVernay's Selma avoids that pitfall altogether by focusing on just a few crucial months in the life of Martin Luther King Jr. In so doing, she's created both an excellent history lesson and a fully realized psychological portrait of a transformative 20th century crusader.

David Oyelowo stars as King, who, as the film opens in 1965, is pushing President Lyndon Johnson (Tom Wilkinson) to address the voting-rights problems blacks are experiencing throughout the South. He details how systematic efforts to keep black people from the polls result in continued poverty, and represent a failure to live up to the country's standards. Johnson is sympathetic, but he has other political battles to fight and refuses to help to the degree King would like. In response, King and his fellow civil-rights leaders plan a peaceful march from Selma, AL, to the state capital of Montgomery in order to take their demands to Governor George Wallace (Tim Roth), knowing full well that if the news cameras see people being abused by officials, Johnson will be goaded into taking action.

The first thing that will jump out at anyone who sees Selma is Oyelowo, a talented actor who gets his biggest role to date here. He gives a marvelous performance that doesn't so much impersonate the Nobel Peace Prize winner as embody his public resolve and steadfast righteousness. All the while, the actor makes sure we realize that King understands the toll his actions are taking on his marriage and his family. He's inspirational not because of the odds he overcomes, but because of the sacrifices he makes to succeed.

DuVernay shows a talent for both large-scale scenes and intimate conversations. The centerpiece of the movie, the march to Montgomery that is violently broken up by local law enforcement, is brutal without being sensationalistic. The sequence is violent and epic, but much of its power is derived from the fact that so many of the people we see suffer are individuals we've come to know and care about. The film smartly personalizes the civil-rights battle for the audience.

Additionally, the scenes in which we see King away from the cameras and the crowds, including a memorable conversation with one of his closest collaborators while they sit in a jail cell, help humanize the man. He's shown to be a savvy speaker who could move others with his fiery oratory, but just as importantly, we see how he could inspire people in one-on-one interactions, earning loyalty with his truthfulness, intelligence, and fierce sense of right and wrong.

Selma is the kind of movie that will be shown by smart high-school teachers, and that's not meant to sound like a dismissal. For all of the weight of history it carries, it's the rare biopic that actually works as both a personal story and an exploration of America's past. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Brad Pitt  Executive Producer 
Brad Pitt  Producer 
Oprah Winfrey  Producer 
Cameron Mccracken  Executive Producer 
Dede Gardner  Producer 
Paul Garnes  Executive Producer 
Nan Morales  Executive Producer 
Christian Colson  Producer 
Ava DuVernay  Director 
Ava DuVernay  Executive Producer 
Jeremy Kleiner  Producer 
Diarmuid McKeown  Executive Producer 
Jason Moran  Composer (Music Score) 
Nik Bower  Executive Producer 
Paul Webb  Screenwriter 
David Oyelowo  Actor 
Tom Wilkinson  Actor 
Cuba Gooding, Jr.  Actor 
Alessandro Nivola  Actor 
Giovanni Ribisi  Actor 
Common  Actor 
Carmen Ejogo  Actor 
Lorraine Toussaint  Actor 
Wendell Pierce  Actor 
Tim Roth  Actor 
Oprah Winfrey  Actor 
Andre Holland  Actor 
Omar J. Dorsey  Actor 
Tessa Thompson  Actor 
Colman Domingo  Actor 
Martin Sheen  Actor 
Dylan Baker  Actor 
Niecy Nash  Actor 
Keith Stanfield  Actor 
Stephan James  Actor 
Haviland Stillwell  Actor 
Nigel Thatch  Actor 
Jeremy Strong  Actor 
Yamanee Coleman  Actor 
Corey Reynolds  Actor 
Ruben Santiago-Hudson  Actor 
Trai Byers  Actor 
John Archer Lundgren  Actor 
E. Roger Mitchell  Actor 
Tara Ochs  Actor 
Henry G. Sanders  Actor 
Kent Faulcon  Actor 
Charity Jordan  Actor 
Christine Horn  Actor 
Preston Baker  Actor 
John Lavelle  Actor 
Stan Houston  Actor 
Dane Davenport  Actor 
Clay Chappell  Actor 
Greg Chandler Maness  Actor 
Ledisi Young  Actor 
Elizabeth Diane Wells  Actor 
Jody Thompson  Actor 
Fred Galle  Actor 
Amahre Palmer  Actor 
Brandon Carroll  Actor 
Nadej K. Bailey  Actor 
Montrel Miller  Actor 
Merriwether Stormy  Actor 
Trinity Simone  Actor 
Walter Hendrix, III  Actor 
Joseph Oliveira  Actor 
Charlandra L. Jacobs  Actor 
David Silverman  Actor 
Michael Shikany  Actor 
Jordan Christina Rice  Actor 
Clint Crane  Actor 
Kenny Cooper  Actor 
Mikeria Howard  Actor 
Roger A. Harrison  Actor 
Aaron Brewstar  Actor 
Brian Kurlander  Actor 
Dexter Tillis  Actor 
Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut  Actor 
Jeffery James Bucchino  Actor 
Mark Cabus  Actor 
John Merical  Actor 
Charles Black  Actor 
Shannon Edwards  Actor 
Gordon Meyer  Actor 
J.J. Green  Actor 
Patti Schellhaas  Actor 
Andrew Bleidner  Actor 
Travis Turner  Actor 
Brandon O'Dell  Actor 
Samuel Lee Fudge  Actor 
Qualen Bradley  Actor 
Kyle McMahon  Actor 
Kathy Alderman  Actor 
John Collier  Actor 
Mike Taylor  Actor 
Jasmine Taylor  Actor 
Tim Battle  Actor 
Carol Anne Taylor  Actor 
Carol Anne Taylor  Actor 
Raven Ferguson  Actor 
Scotty Bishop  Actor 
Rachelle Wicker  Actor 
Rachelle Wicker  Actor 
Ronan Brookes  Actor 
Thom McGlon  Actor 
Christopher Anthony Carr  Actor 
Thomas Hughes  Actor 
Amy Elizabeth Jones  Actor 
Ryan Fontaine  Actor 
AngelAnn Green-Orr  Actor 
Todd Sassano  Actor 
Donald Horner  Actor 

Country: USA