Ava Duvernay's 'Selma': Film Analysis

History will always be open to interpretation & minor changes when it comes to

filmmaking, whether the film is written based on facts or built on fiction. There are many things

a director could do when it comes to making a film based on historical events. Sometimes, a

director could choose to represent a few events inaccurately in exchange for more impactful and

dramatic, but inaccurate scenes. In the film industry, most directors are looking to appeal to as

wide an audience as possible. Not all people might find that learning about history interests

them. Consequently, smart directors will tend to alter some of theses historical events so that

most people will be able to enjoy them. Accordingly, Ava DuVernay's “Selma” is an example

Discrimination and hatred were commonly directed towards African Americans. They

were deprived of almost every basic civil right that is promised to Americans, such as

It did not stray away from touchy subjects, such as the public

shooting in a cafe, or the bombing, which involved four girls being killed. They also accurately

represented King’s 54-mile march from the town of Selma to Montgomery ("Martin Luther

King Jr."). Overall, DuVernay was able to get King’s point across, and, in the process, depicted

him as the revolutionary man that he was.

"Selma" is a very important and inspirational film as it was able to fairly accurately

portray Martin Luther King, Jr's. historical significance. Moreover, the film has a clear and

concise message for the audience; to see the reality of this entire situation, and to raise their

awareness of the issues that are displayed in the film. All of this is shown through the events in

King’s life. A film like this is a must see for everyone because it highlights certain problems that,

although not as bad as back then, still exist to this day. There are people who could care less

about issues like these, however, after a one-time viewing of this film, they will most certainly,

at least, start to care about this issue. All in all, Selma was a great and emotional film; however,

it did have its fair share of inaccuracies and