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Home > Categories > Movies > Drama > The Butler review

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Score: 9.1/10  [3 reviews]
4 out of 5
ProdID: 5595 - The Butler
Directed by Lee Daniels

The Butler
Price:
$39.99
Available:
June 2014

The Butler product reviews

For three decades, Cecil Gaines (Academy Award Winner Forest Whitaker) served as the chief butler for eight consecutive US presidents, including Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. Working intimately with these world leaders at the White House, from his unique vantage point Cecil Gaines witnessed radical transformations in American history through the civil rights movement to Vietnam and the Cold War - and how those changes affected his life and family. Based on a true story, Lee Daniels (Precious) directs a stellar ensemble cast who between them have garnered 18 Academy Award nominations.

The incredible cast of The Butler includes Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey, Jane Fonda, John Cusack, Robin Williams, Alan Rickman, James Marsden and Liev Schreiber.



Tags:
forest whitaker   oprah winfrey   true story   us presidents   civil rights   slavery   abolition
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Click here to read the profile of shellcruise

Review by: shellcruise (Shelley)
Dated: 29th of November, 2014

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This Review: 8.3/10
Pay to see it again:
Score 7 out of 10
Attention Span:
Score 8 out of 10
Believeability:
Score 10 out of 10
Personal Choice:
Score 8 out of 10

A dark reminder of how hard African Americans had it in the past. Starting of Cecil is born into Cotton Planatation slavery where he witnesses his mother being taken away to be raped and his father shot right in front of him. He escapes and becomes a butler to the White House and three different presidents. It brings up the fact 'coloured' people do not receive the same payment as the 'white folk' and also they do not receive promotions as fast as the 'white people'.

I found this movie to be more about the Civil Rights movement and fighting to get equality then really the white house and his job there. It focuses heavily on his son and him fighting for the Black Panthers. It takes you through three presidents including the JFK assasination.

I found the likeliness of all of the characters amazing. The face alternation masks the men wore were incredible and there acting was spot on. It had a star studdied cast and everyone did a brilliant job. It does have its slow periods and can be rather tedious watching but it is still a gribbing drama as to what it used to be like for the African Americans.

One thing I did love is near the end Oprah and Forrest visit the old plantation and he comments that Americans are appalled as to what happens in other countries like with the concentration camps but that happened right here in the US with Negros for over 200 years they lived in concentration camps and nobody cares. What a powerful realistic discription of what life was like for them.



Click here to read the profile of rekebum

Review by: rekebum (Shani)
Dated: 26th of November, 2014

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This Review: 10/10
Pay to see it again:
Score 10 out of 10
Attention Span:
Score 10 out of 10
Believeability:
Score 10 out of 10
Personal Choice:
Score 10 out of 10

My partner had been wanting to see this so it was one of the first movies on our list when we signed up to Fatso and we were not disappointed! The fact that it was based on a True Story intrigued me.

The Butler followed the life of Cecil who served in the White House working for eight president's. There are plenty of issues addressed in The Butler while managing to stay in line with the story line and without straying which I liked.

The Butler had lots of heart warming moments, plenty of drama and few good laughs too. It had a great story line and a fantastic cast. It is the kind of movie I could watch again and again. There are parts of the movie that make you stop and think and some that make you question how people behaved back in the day. The Butler is a great movie to learn a little about the history of America.

The cast features many well known faces including Oprah Winfrey, Mariah Carey, Robin Williams and Forest Whitaker. The entire cast does a fantastic job at their roles and making their characters believable. I do think they could have put more work into making the Presidents look like the people they were playing but other than that a great movie that was enjoyed by us both!

Click here to read the profile of corrinas

Review by: corrinas (Corrina)
Dated: 8th of July, 2014

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This Review: 9.0/10
Pay to see it again:
Score 9 out of 10
Attention Span:
Score 9 out of 10
Believeability:
Score 9 out of 10
Personal Choice:
Score 9 out of 10

I had heard a lot about The Butler and as I love true stories and this was based on one I decided I needed to check it out. While I really enjoyed the movie I found it completely different than what I expected.

The Butler is only very loosely based on a true story and there was a lot of drama added to it so it can highlight a lot of the other issues going on throughout the time Cecil worked in the White house. The movie follows Cecil through childhood to his role as butler serving 8 presidents. They manage to introduce so many issues all within one movie and do it in such a way that it flows and all makes sense.

There is a very big star studded cast with many famous actors having cameo roles throughout the movie. Those in the led roles however do a wonderful job and portray their characters brilliantly. Forest Whitaker was a great choice as the role of Cecil he plays him with all the mannerisms of a true butler. He portrays a quiet, calm hard-working man who would do anything for anyone. He portrays so much emotion in his face and through his actions. Oprah Winfrey also does a wonderful job as his wife, you feel her joy, pain and emotion throughout the entire movie.

The Butler is the type of movie that will make you stop and think. It has it's moments that pulls at your heartstrings and it also has it's moments were it seems a little drawn out. Over all though it is a movie well worth watching, it's an American history lesson all within the space of a very enjoyable movie.

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