Slavery movies timeline

The first movie I'm going to introduce you to is Twelve years a slave :

- about the life of slaves in America before Secession War around 1840

- inspired by a real story

- shows the cruelty of plantation owners

and the hard life of slaves

- has been awarded multiple times

- denounces the non punishment amd the crimes of the slavery

The second movie is entitled The birth of a Nation :

- american movie, story of the Secession War

- came out the 8th of February 1915 (fifty years after the Secession War)

- southern point of view : slaves are represented happy, racist thoughts, Ku Klux Klan isn't blamed for his crimes

- actually brought the Ku Klux Klan back

- the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People protested against the broadcasting - there has been riots in Boston and Philadelphia, some cities are against the broadcast too.

Then I'll talk about Glory :

- came out in 1989, received three oscars

- during Secession War too

- depicts the story of deported black people who thought they were going to War

- denounces the way dignity and humanity has been taken from Black people

- but has been criticized because it still has this white commander's point of view instead of the slaves' point of view.

The Help is a well known Black History movie :

- made in 2011

- story of a white woman in the sixties, who studies the conditions of slaves

- together they write a book where they condemn this owner/slave lifestyle

- has been awarded a lot

- shows the slaves' lives with a touch of humour

To finish, I'll talk about Selma;

- story of Martin Luther King's fight for the right to vote for all citizens

- came out two years ago, story happened around 1965

- Selma's the city were a long march began, to end in Montgomery, when president Johnson agreed with MLK's idea

We can see that throughout the years, slavery never stopped being one of the subjects treated in cinema where we can try to understand history from different point of views. Also, these movies bring us back in the past, to make us think about the present.

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