The Butler

Trailer- Coming soon

Fun fact before I get to my sirius review of a sirius film. Butlers are called butlers because they buttle people. Yeah buttling is actually a thing. And possibly my new favourite word.

The Butler is a film based on a true story about a black butler who worked for the president for maneh maneh years from the 50s to early 80s (I think). It deals with his life and his family as well as black people's civil rights in general while also dabbling a bit in other American politics of the time.

 It's not something you'd usually see me review under Elephantchris reviews; my film taste is often a bit lighter. But I'm glad I saw The Butler. It started really strong, the anti-black issues of the time were very well dealt with and was for the most part very interesting. It's just a shame it's let down by a weak finish and long run-time.

I found the best part of the film was when it dealt with Cecil's (the butler in question) rise from slave to hotel worker to white house butler and his initial time there. It's interesting to see how the world reacts to him and how he's overwhelmed when he gets to serve the president for the first time. There's a heartfelt family story behind it all and it all feels very human. I love rooting for an underdog and Cecil is definitely that. He's a hugely disadvantaged man who's been given the chance of a lifetime.

The 'black power' aspect of the film is dealt with through a sub-story with his son joining a group at university to stand up for black rights. This is where I think the film is most clever. It would have been easy to ham up how badly black people were treated and the film to scream 'LOOK HOW BAD THE WHITE MAN TRIED BLACK PEOPLE!'. But it doesn't.  There's tense scenes where they are treated like crap by racists and at one point the KKK but it also shows how in their defiance the movement they created went a little too far at times. As the film goes on you find yourself not fully backing Cecil's son, you disagree with the things they do. It's a risky move that really pays off, until they almost ruin it at the end of course.

If it sounds like I'm siding with the KKK there I'm not- you'd need to see the film to understand. Or maybe I'm just a massive racist.

There's a boatload of celebrities in the film and it is a little distracting. No one does a bad job but when Robin Williams turns round as president Eisenhower it's not president Eisenhower. It's Robin Williams.

As said above the film really starts to drag after about the 90 minute mark and the stories they tell after some of the bigger stories they tell in the 60s-70s seem totally uninteresting. If it had stopped at the start of the Nixon administration it would've been perfect.

That's when the film nearly ruins itself by prolonging the story right until near present day and loses it's initial message and subtlety. It doesn't ruin the film that's happened before it but it comes close.

The Butler is well worth seeing but just be prepared to be in the cinema a little longer than you'd want to. If the film had kept up the momentum it had at the start it would be a must-see.

7/10