Harriet

Oscar season is fully underway as there's nearly a new film every week that is attempting to garner enough praise to warrant awards consideration. Harriet's marketing campaign was less than stellar, and without a lot of buzz, I figured it was going to be a throwaway period piece about an iconic American hero. Luckily, Cynthia Ervo and a great ensemble help put this fill over the mediocre edge and instead boast a crowd-pleaser of a film. One that audiences seem to be on board with, and rightfully so. It's certainly not re-inventing the biopic formula, but it's undeniably engaging.

7.0/10

I went in wanting to love it, ended up just waiting for it to be over. The best part to me was the closing scene and the written adlibs after. I really don't like disparaging works that show the history of Blacks in America, as our stories need to be told, but I was very disappointed. The lead did not evoke any compassion in me, and the villain was very unconvincing. Think about it, 12 Years a Slave and Django had you side-eyeing the actors that played the slave owners because they emoted so well. The lead villain, Gideon Brodess, God Bless him, didn't pull it off IMO. The fact that the best performances were the supporting cast, Leslie Odom as William Still, Clarke Peter as Harriet's father, Omar J. Dorsey (no spoilers as to role) and Henry Hunter Hall (no spoilers as to role) doesn't bode well for a film. Maybe the fact that they made Harriet 24, 25 instead of a mature woman? Maybe it was the dialogue that was written a bit "slick" for the time period? Maybe the inconsistencies with what was presented vs reality? Even Janelle Monae was just so so for me. Although I do not work in Hollywood, when there are that many failures within performances and only the veteran actors shine, it may be the director. I dunno, but I was disappointed. I would still support the film because we need Hollywood to know we want our stories heard/seen. Maybe if Viola Davis' project had gotten support, her version would have been better. She was going to star in and produce a biopic on Harriet Tubman for HBO, but it never happened. I would give it 5/10 stars.

The film is ultimately fairly frustrating. The central performance by Erivo was really good and powerful. The film is quite handsome-it was nice seeing some photography by Toll with a budget. The technical aspects provoke period and the director gets a lot of suspense out of Tubman's escape and rescue missions. The film takes a pretty narrow range of Tubman's life as its plot but working within that range it seems to be fairly accurate. It certainly was engaging. The film resists centering whiteness-abet not fully-and I was glad to see that the Underground Railroad seemed to be almost exclusively black. The film doesn't contain a white savoir trope so there's at least that.

However, the film's narrowness results in a too simple and too short of a rendering of Tubman's life. Her work on Women's suffrage was a mere footnote. Arguments around what sort of actions the abolitionist movement should take were greatly reduced. John Brown was omitted entirely. Fredrick Douglas was given a cameo. The film jumps years at a time and it results in narrative that is merely a skeleton of Tubman's most well known experiences.

The film is weirdly hesitant around Tubman committing justified violence. At times the film contorts itself to avoid showing Tubman hurting people, especially white people. It seemed to be too saintly of a characterization especially as the film leans heavily on Tubman's faith. (In general the faith stuff lands with emotional resonance). This is a far less visceral portrayal of slavery than 12 Years a Slave.

Overall I think this is pretty good biopic.

No documentary is perfect, and besides, this is not a documentary--it is a movie. I'm sure some facts were not accurate, but I'm also sure they did Harriet justice. The movie was moving and thought provoking. My only real criticism was the score. They must have saved money there. The acting was good as were the other cinematic elements. Skip the fake superhero movies and watch a real superhero...and if you don't think Harriet Tubman was a superhero, I can't help you with any review.

Fantastic job on the FIRST feature film about Harriet Tubman. All of the actors did a great job bringing this historical figure to life. This film deserved more accolades than it received.