Film

What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases

Search cinema listings

Browse cinemas A-Z

Search 20,000 reviews

 

The Great Debaters (2007)

Director: Denzel Washington

2
Average user rating
No reviews

Movie review

From Time Out New York

The rules of formal debate are clear. Avoid emotional appeals. Empty rhetoric will cost you. Stick to the facts. Destroy your opponents’ arguments with sustained, reasoned attacks. The rules of The Great Debaters are also fixed. If you must clap, clap extremely slowly, with tears rimming your eyes. Have your inspirational coach (Washington, also behind the camera) ladle out tough love, while also teaching his eager students to overcome 1930s Texas racism with their beautiful minds. Have this teacher observe their final victory from a balcony, quaking with pride. Have it be at Harvard. (In real life, it was the University of Southern California.)

The story of Wiley College’s national triumph under the real Melvin B. Tolson fits the Oprah mold snugly; her company is a producer. And while it would be unseemly to fully reject a movie this well-meaning, you wish it had more faith in the intellect of its viewers. It calls out for a thornier director, one who might have made an ironic meal out of the phony wars of words hiding deeper resentments. Forest Whitaker shows up as a stern, righteous scholar; though he never gets the chance, you know he could eat these cute debaters for breakfast.

Author: Joshua Rothkopf 2007-12-11 18:58:31

Time Out New York Time Out New York, Issue 637–638, December 13–26, 2007


  • Print this page
  • Send to a friend

What do you think?
Post your review now

clear rating
Min 1 star. Zero stars will be treated as unrated.

*mandatory fields


Cast & crew

Director: Denzel Washington

Cast: Denzel Washington, Nate Parker, John Heard, Forest Whitaker

Genre(s): Drama

Duration: 123 mins

US Release: Dec 25 2007




Top Stories

Our verdict on Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones

Our verdict on Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones

Peter Jackson ends a triumphant decade with a sentimental misfire with this lush Alice Sebold adaptation

On the set of Ken Loach's 'Route Irish'

On the set of Ken Loach's 'Route Irish'

Dave Calhoun meets Ken Loach on the set of his forthcoming Iraq war movie

Stephen Poliakoff discusses 'Glorious 39'

Stephen Poliakoff discusses 'Glorious 39'

Stephen Poliakoff’s ‘Glorious 39’ is his first film for cinema since ‘Food of Love’ in 1997. Dave Calhoun met him

Is 'Paranormal Activity' the new 'Blair Witch'?

Is 'Paranormal Activity' the new 'Blair Witch'?

How does a film go from DIY experiment to box-office smash? 'Paranormal Activity' director Oren Peli explains

Steven Soderbergh on 'The Informant!' and 'The Girlfriend Experience'

Steven Soderbergh on 'The Informant!' and 'The Girlfriend Experience'

We talk to Steven Soderbergh about his two forthcoming films: one featuring a porn star, the other a chubby Matt Damon

A gateway to all things 'New Moon'

A gateway to all things 'New Moon'

In anticipation of 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon', Time Out is offering the chance to pick up a limited edition pack with three exclusive magazines and a free poster.

London Children's Film Festival

London Children's Film Festival

Read our exclusive reviews of films playing at the 2009 London Children’s Film Festival

The films that deserve a TV spin-off

The films that deserve a TV spin-off

With Roland Emmerich suggesting he'd like to make a '2012' TV spin-off, we propose some more movie-to-TV serialisations

The Coen brothers discuss 'A Serious Man'

The Coen brothers discuss 'A Serious Man'

Masters of contrary comedy, Joel and Ethan Coen have struck gold again with their latest, ‘A Serious Man’

Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam

Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam

In celebration of the release of Pixar's 'Up' and Wes Anderson's 'Fantastic Mr Fox', read our rundown of fifty classic feature length animations