As Cecil Gaines serves eight presidents during his tenure as a butler at the White House, the civil rights movement, Vietnam, and other major events affect this man's life, family, and American society.
A great film about the American civil rights movement is way overdue. The Butler, overwhelmed by flash and good intentions, doesn't even come close.
It may skip so quickly through historic events that it can feel rushed and flimsy, but excellent performances elevate it to serious Oscar contender.
Apparently the film is based on real White House butler Eugene Allen: you can’t help feeling he should have been served better.
Manipulative and preachy, The Butler is redeemed by a sensitive performance from Forest Whitaker and the undeniable power of the events it depicts.
It may be a tad schematic but it’s never less than absorbing and beautifully acted by a strong cast, including Oprah Winfrey as Cecil’s troubled, lonely wife.
If only history were like this: epochs of simple-minded epic struggle, followed by happy-ever-after closures.
There is a kind of poignancy in Cecil's stolid persistence. But any tears or cheers soon give way to a muffled yawn.
The film-makers take a tableau approach to storytelling, whisking us from one melodramatic set-piece to the next and using Cecil’s voice-over to bridge the gaps.
Long, ponderous, but undeniably entertaining, The Butler is a ritzy crash-course in US political change.
The film is many things but it's never dull.
Forest Whitaker meets Forrest Gump.
Whitaker's performance, and the dignity with which Gaines' comports himself, seem to say something moving and true about the pain endured by the pre-Civil Rights generation of black Americans.
An essential addition the canon of films about the African-American experience.
It's a veritable star-spangled jamboree. And through it all, Whitaker keeps his powder admirably dry, carefully negotiating the space between the shadows and centre stage, speaking volumes through understatement, making a very admirable fist of the least starry "starring" role in recent mainstream movie-going memory.
The Butler: the story of black America
Eugene Allen: The Real Butler
The Butler serves up a deeply affecting but sometimes farcical biopic
General release. Check local listings for show times.
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