On 22nd September, I had the unique opportunity to watch a screening of The Great Debaters at Kensington Library Theatre, presented by Black History Walks http://www.blackhistorywalks.co.uk/ and Images of Black Women Film Festival http://www.imagesofblackwomen.com/ The Great Debaters is a 2007 American biopic period drama film directed by and starring two-time Academy Award winner Denzel Washington and produced by Oprah Winfrey and her production company, Harpo Productions.
The film co-stars Forest Whitaker, Kimberly Elise, Nate Parker, Denzel Whitaker and more. The screenplay was written by Robert Eisele. This remarkable film is based on a true story of Melvin B. Tolson, a professor at Wiley College, Texas. In 1935, he inspired students to form the school's first debate team, which went on to challenge Harvard in the national championship.
I enjoyed the film alot and found it refreshing to see black characters in positive roles. But more than that, it was inspirational and educational as I'd never heard of The Great Debaters before. The fact that this film has never been picked by any UK distributor saddens me but doesn't surprise me. I've often questionned why is it that some of the best black films are being blocked from reaching our TV screens; it feels like a conspiracy to me. I've witnessed this for far too long. When I spent 3 months in Jamaica from September - December 2007, I was amazed and pleasantly surprised at just how many excellent black (American) films were screened along with other live concerts, e.g. Justin Timberlake (which was outstanding by the way).
Thankfully, there is now an outlet for seeing films such as these and I look forward to being inspired further at future screenings.
For more about The Great Debaters:
www.thegreatdebatersmovie.com/site.html
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