The Walk - La strada della libertà

I'm Irish so, forgive my lack of knowledge of American Social History.

I was, and am, very well aware of Rosa Parks however, I never knew there was massive school segregation in the north most part of America. I always assumed that, because the northern states of America being more liberal, and most definitely pro abolitionist; whilst not all being well in the neighbourhood, assumed that life was more normal. This movie showed different.

It was a shocking eye opener to people like me, who know a lot yet, also know so little. I thought that the problem originally was with choice, not being allowed to go to the school of one's choice. Upon viewing, it appears it was the forcing of students to attend colleges, they did not want to attend....

All I can say is this. The culmination of cast, crew, writers, directors, etc., none of whom I know by the way (except for Malcom McDowell); put together a package that is not easily forgotten. He actually brought a smile to my face. An Englishman, speaking with a broad Boston Irish accent, and speaking Irish, brought a little light relief, to a serious story.

Well done everyone, for bringing this piece of history to light, I could relate. It's the first movie to watch at my age (64) that relates to my life.

In 1974, I was 16. I was doing my secondary school exams in June, after 3 years of education. I passed the exams with flying colours and applied for a job in the Irish Air Corps (RAF, USAF). By September I had no word, I was back in school studying higher maths with no books because, I didn't know if I'd needed them.

Eventually a letter was sent to the Irish Government to find out if I had a job or not. I did, I joined, did 32 years, and retired as an Air Crash Investigator. Ironically, all this transpired during massive problems in Ireland, mostly in the North. The storylines are different yet, not so different. Fear and hatred, on either side o the Athaltic, induced by history; which can be overcome, by courage and strength of character, and people.

I thought the description sounded interesting and was filled with great cast members but I have to say that as the story unfolded I was stunned at the relevance and effectiveness of the storyline to what is going on in our world today. I lived through this time period and the movie makes you feel like you were actually there and feeling the rawness. It serves as an excellent piece of cinematic work. The even more spectacular part is that I have not heard of the film before today. It really is a such a gem and I think all persons, especially teenagers should watch it to gain such powerful perspective.

Set in 1974 Boston, the film centers on police officer Bill Coughlin, who is tasked to protect a couple of black students as they are bussed into an all-white high school, Coughlin being also under the pressure of a local crime boss. In the same time, Wendy Robbins, a 18-year-old student and her father Lamont, are caught in the middle of some violent protests on the streets, while Kate, Bill's teenage daughter, is faced with her own racist attitude.

The Walk is a 2022 historical drama film based on true events about the 1974 Boston desegregation busing crisis. Directed by Daniel Adams from a script he co-wrote with George Powell, the film stars Justin Chatwin, Terrence Howard, Jeremy Piven, Lovie Simone and Malcolm McDowell.

I think this movie was about average, despite good actors and production. For me, too much talking and unnecessary scenes made for a less interesting story... and some of the Chicago accents were annoyingly overexaggerated. I'm not sure why it had to be a period piece either (early 70s I guess), but the main theme seemed to be "How bigotry was even worse back then" which, while sometimes it serves the story or is a necessary part of it, isn't enough of story in itself to be interesting. There are thousands of them already. It may evoke viewers' emotions but it's as cheap as a girl in a horror movie looking for her dog alone in the woods at night. Yawn. Full disclosure: I didn't finish this one.

I really enjoyed this movie. Being mixed with black and Mexican I can never be able to imagine what minorities had to endure during those times. It was an emotional movie. The acting was great and it had me very grateful for being able to watch it. The end did leave me with a cliffhanger.