FILM... through our EYES!!!

INTRODUCTION


Being a Negro in America means trying to smile when you want to cry. It means trying to hold on to physical life amid psychological death. It means the pain of watching your children grow up with clouds of inferiority in their mental skies. It means having your legs cut off, and then being condemned for being a cripple. There is no plausible explanation as to the reason why man has become beast to his fellow man, killing and tearing him apart for sport, pleasure or even no reason at all. Thus, the black people are killed for no other cause than the fact that they were created black by a creator whom they had never seen before. It is this barbaric segregation based on race and colour that Denzel Washington seeks to explore in the film; The Great Debaters.


AN OVERVIEW OF THE FILM
Inspired by a true story, ‘the Great debaters’ archives the rise of a struggling debate team in Wiley College which was one of the few black colleges in 1930s Texas. The focus of the story is the group of young students who are screened and trained for the debate team, under the guidance of enigmatic teacher Melvin Tolson (Denzel Washington). Tolson is a threat to whites in the community who don’t like the fact that he’s a radical sort who is organizing a revolution amongst the local farmers.

More distinctively, the story’s limelight is focused on four intelligent students who come from different backgrounds. Henry Lowe (Nate Parker) is the defiant but extremely brilliant type. Samantha Booke (Jurnee Smollett) is the only girl on the team and has transferred from another school simply to be on the debate team and air her opinions about racism. Hamilton Burgess (Jermaine Williams) is a bright but conservative speaker while James Farmer, Jr. (Denzel Whitaker), is the youngest member of the team whose strict father, Professor James Farmer (Forest Whitaker) is both a preacher and a professor at Wiley College, and he is not in agreement with Tolson’s radical nature. Tolson also has communist ties and politics which he relegates to the externalities of the classroom while he concentrates on carving the students into powerful speakers by encouraging his students those to use words as weapons and this result in a number of victories against local colleges.

PLOT
The Debaters is the true story of radical Professor Melvin Tolson (Denzel Washington) and his effort to take the newly formed African-American Wiley College Texas debate team to an influential status and use them in the fight against racial subjugation. Through their struggles, they are invited to battle the national champions, Harvard University where they emerge winners.

THEMES
• Extreme Racial Discrimination – This is the main theme of the movie as racism is clearly seen all through the movie beginning from the scene where Professor James Farmer killed a big belonging to two white men. The humiliation and degradation is seen in the eyes of Dr. Farmer as he obeys everything the white men say. This can also be seen when the black farmers in the community were having a meeting for revolution. The debate against the Oklahoma University school team when the University refused to allow the Willey College debating team into their premises for the debate because of their black race.
• Persistence/Determination – This is also one of the strongest themes in the film as we see persistence in Tolson and members of his team as they raise their voices and fight against racial discrimination through their debates and even when it seems like all hope is lost, they still pick themselves up and try again.
• Passion – This is exuded by Tolson all through the film. He has a passion for his work in training the students and a passion for his cause in fighting for the revolution of the black people. He works hard and doesn’t care about himself in the passion and his drive for freedom from racism.
• Love – James Farmer Junior’s love for Samantha Booke is seen right from the day she enters into his class through to the end of the film to the extent that he even fantasises about dancing with her.
• Betrayal – Betrayal is also a theme in this film as James Farmer Junior feels betrayed by Samantha when he finds out that she has had sex with Henry Lowe. Betrayal can also be seen when Samantha finds that Henry has cheated on her with another girl.
• Hope – This is another theme in the movie and it depicts how the blacks in the film believe that there is hope for the black race and that segregation and discrimination will cease and this is why they still continue to fight despite all odds.

NARRATIVES
There are three narratives in one that we see at the beginning that merged to become one later in the film. These narratives are used to introduce the major characters into the film and they include:
• The dancing black folk the audience is introduced to Henry Lowe and Melvin Tolson who are key characters in the film.
• The train ride which acquaints the audience with the only girl on the debate team. Her name is Samantha Booke.
• Professor James Farmer who gives a debate that introduces the essence of the film as one that shows a fight for freedom of the blacks from racial discrimination through a powerful voice and a debating team. This narrative also brings James Farmer Junior as well as Pearl Farmer into the picture.

REALIZED EXPECTATIONS
• I expected the Wiley team to win their final debate with Harvard University.
• I expected Dr. Farmer to be treated the way he was during the pig incidence.

CHEATED EXPECTATIONS (SUPRISE)
• I did not expect James Farmer Junior to cause the defeat of the team in the debate against Michigan.
• I also did not expect Henry to behave the way he did after their encounter with the Lynch mob and the Lynched man who was burnt to death.
• I expected Henry to really apologise and beg Samantha for having sexual intercourse with another girl no matter if he was drunk or not.
• I did not expect Tolson to show up at the final debate with Havard.
• I also expected that Henry would be the one who leads the Wiley College team to victory against the Havard team.
• I did not expect Tolson to be let off the hook by the whites so easily.


EMOTIONS AND FEELINGS
• Hurt and Betrayal – This feeling comes clearly as Samantha stares at Henry locked in passion with another girl. Samantha cries as she stares helplessly at Henry who does not seem to care that he could be seen by anyone around the area.
• Bitterness – This is clearly felt when Henry was shouting at Farmer Junior after the Lynching incident that he was not the only one who was hurting was never going to forget what he saw (the burnt man). Henry’s bitterness is also felt as he recounts the harsh brutalities of the whites to the blacks.
• Love – James ‘s love for Samantha right from the day she walks into his class is so palpable that even a knife would be able to slice through it.
• Shame and Embarrassment – The feeling overcomes the audience at the scene of Professor James Farmer’s accident with the white man’s pig. Farmer is told to pick up the check which is intentionally thrown by the white man and also carries the pig after paying off the men with his next salary.
• Fear – Henry, James and Samantha’s fear seeps through to the audience as Tolson drives speedily in order to outrun the Lynch mob and save their lives. James’ fear is felt during the white men’s raid on the farmer’s meeting. The fear of the two black workmen who were interrogated by the Sherriff about the farmers’ revolution.
• Pity – This is also evident when Farmer’s wife tells him that the family needed the salary to feed and survive. Pity is also felt for Tolson when Hamilton quits the group.
• Happiness – The feeling comes through to the audience each time the Wiley debaters won a debate especially the ground breaking debate at Harvard University.
• Sadness – The feeling comes across after the Lynching scenario. The sadness is felt in the four characters present.
• Hope – When the Harvard invitation comes in, there is the feeling that all hope is not lost despite the loss of the debate.

CAUSE AND EFFECT
• The major cause that produced the most outstanding effect is the lynching of the black man who is burnt to death. If this had not happened when it did, the Wiley debaters would not have seen it and thus, they probably might not have won the ultimate debate between Harvard University.
• Being witnesses of the lynching scene was also a catalyst for Henry’s drunken state which caused his betrayal to Samantha, causing her to jilt the team at the last minute and thereby denting the Wiley team’s undefeated debate record.
• Samantha’s answer to Tolson’s question in the beginning about the sad look in a mother’s eyes when she can’t feed her baby is the joker Henry uses to win their first debate competition with Harlequin College.
• Tolson’s imprisonment and bail terms barred him from going to Boston with his team and caused the team to be dangerously unstable for a while.



SIMILIARITY AND REPITITION
• “Resolved” – This word is always used before the start of any debate in the film and it is also used by Tolson to indicate the end of the quarrel between Samantha and Henry after Samantha’s slap.
• “An Unjust Law is No Law At All” – This phrase is used twice in the film; Professor James Farmer to the Sheriff and Farmer Junior in the Harvard University debate.
• Who is the Judge?
The Judge is God.
And why is it God?
Because He decides who wins or loses not my opponent.
And who is your opponent?
He doesn’t exist.
Why doesn’t he exist?
Because He is the mute dissenting voice to the truth that I speak.
Speak the truth.
These statements taught to the Wiley debate team by Tolson was repeated over and over again in the film, at the beginning during their first training and at the end on the eve of the Harvard debate.
• “Doing What We Have to Do So that We Can Do What We Want to Do”
This statement is used by James Farmer and James Farmer Junior in the film.
• Book with an ‘e’ and Low with an ‘e’
This is repeatedly used by Professor Tolson in the movie.
• The Cap that Henry wore at different times in the film.
Similarities are seen between the following:
• Tolson and Henry share a common behaviour characteristic as they are both obstinate, passionate and extremely intelligent people.

DIFFERENCES AND VARIATION
• Farmer Junior and Henry are two totally different people who though intelligent, think differently and are from different childhood backgrounds. Junior is calm and conservative while Henry is quite the opposite.
• Henry Lowe in the beginning is a cheap drunk and street fighter who has been imprisoned before but the latter Henry Lowe becomes a respectable member of the society; a Theologian.

DEPTH OF STORY TREATMENT
• This is obvious when the film plunges into the inner thought of James Farmer Junior on Prom night as he fantasises on how he would dance with and kiss Samantha Booke.
• It can also be inferred that James junior led the team to defeat due to the lynching of the previous night that they witnessed.


FUNCTIONS OF ELEMENTS
• The whole essence of the film in itself is based on a past historical event – Racisim. The film captures the segregation in the 1930s through the demonstration of the debate between Wiley College which represents the black race and the University of Southern California, (the whites) who at the time were the reigning debating champions. According to history, Wiley College did win the debate so it was a real achievement because Southern California was equal to today’s Harvard.
• How did Dr. James Farmer find out where his older son had been that prom night?
• Henry Lowe never really apologised to Samantha for his disloyalty to her and the audience was left to assume how they managed to patch up their relationship.
• The scene where Dr. James Farmer had to pay a fortune for the pig he accidentally killed shows the level of racial discrimination that prevalent in that society.

MIS EN SCENE
• Setting – The setting of this film is based in Jim Crow South Marshall, Texas. It is a semi urban setting which has attributes of both the rural and a little of the city life.
• Costume – There was no special use of costumes as the costume for the film is all corporate and I believe it does not represent the living standards of the black people especially those who the film portrays as poor. For example, Dr. James and his family live on a mere 17 dollars and 37 cents per month yet they wear nice suits and live in a good house.
• Lighting and Colour – The lighting of the film is really up to standard and the colour fluctuates between grayscale to light colours that make the environment really look rural.
• Behaviour of the Characters – The characters were great and they all played their parts extremely well ranging from Denzel Washington to Whittaker and the others.

CINEMATOGRAPHY
• Long Shot – This shot is used at the very beginning of the film in giving the viewers a wide view of the area as well as relating the audience with the environment of the movie. This shot is also used as the Wiley debaters step into the Havard hall for the first time.
• Crane Shot – A crane shot is used to usher in the final debate between both teams and it also shows the magnificence of the hall as well as the great number of people in attendance.
• Fast Cutting – Fast cutting transitional devices are used during the final debate in rattling between Harvard University, Wiley University and the home of Dr. James Farmer.
• Hand Held Camera Shot – This is seen in the scene where Tolson is driving recklessly when trying to escape the lynch mob.
• Point of View (P.O.V) – This is clear when Tolson arrives the debate venue at Harvard and is expecting to see Henry up on stage, when he doesn’t, he scans the crowd until he finds Henry and this is shown with the movement of the camera.
• Close up Shots – In the film, close ups are used to show the audience that there is a meaning connected to the particular object being shown. The close up shot of the Harvard debate trophy is seen. This is also evident during the team’s first practice when they began the chant; Who is the judge?, The Judge is God...
• High Angle – This is used when Tolson leaves Havard University after the Wiley team has won the competition.
• Medium Shot – This is the common shot used in the film. It is used to help the viewers relate with the person in the film.

CONCLUSION
I was able to relate to both sides of the student's lives -- academic and personal. Scenes in the film which were difficult to watch helped me understand the emotional state of the characters, their feeling of fear and shame et cetera. The film states clearly the events that happened in the South in the 1930s. While these scenes take the focus off of the debating at times, they also help in the understanding of the characters and the feelings that go into their debate arguments. Having the opportunity to see the love and loss, fear and shame, recklessness and determination, gave the characters life that made it all so real and allowed me to feel like I was really a part of all the events.

THE STORY


The struggle by the black race, also called the coloured people, for equality with the whites is perhaps one of the most prolonged issues of our time. This struggle was actuated by the preconceived idea that whites are superior to blacks because of some myopic biases that the former hold against the latter. Upholding their biases above morality and peaceful co-existence, this supposedly superior group has committed innumerable atrocities against their fellow humans all because they are of a different skin colour-black. The euphemism, racial discrimination, is a poor attempt at describing these inhumane acts.

The Great Debaters, directed by Denzel Washington is a vivid description of racial discrimination in America in the 1930s. The movie is about a certain professor at Wiley College, Mr. Tolson (Denzel Washington), who was against this discrimination and subjugation and was willing to be a voice for the people. He projected this voice through a debate team of four students who promoted the ideology that white and black children should be given the same privileges and opportunities because the blacks are not just part of America, but actually “the thread that holds it together”.

Tolson, who is dedicated to this cause of changing the status-quo, gives his best into training his team for debate competitions. The debate team is also portrayed as having a passion for change and not just winning the competitions. Together, both team and coach work tirelessly together and win a lot of competitions, the climax of which was beating Harvard university in their final competition.



THE PLOT

Being a movie depicting the 1930s, the plot of this movie centres on old practices and customs. This is mirrored in the type of music, geographical location, props and so on that was used in the movie. For instance, the type of music being played at the beginning of the movie was anything but modern. The location was dominated by sandy roads, grasslands and so on. An example of a prop that depicted that era was the locomotive train that transported the debate team when they were leaving for their competition at Harvard University.

THE NARRATIVE

There are two narratives embedded in this movie;

 The personal lives of the debaters : Initially, the three debaters were shown in their former social circumstances; Henry Lowe at a party, James Farmer Junior at the church and Samantha Booke on a journey.

 The debate competitions: The movie later graduates into showing these people with their lives revolving around their debates.

THE THEMES

The following themes were depicted in the movie;

 Racial Discrimination: This movie showed various scenes that spoke volumes about the level of racial discrimination during that era. An example of such scenes is that in which a negro was hanged and burned to death for nor justifiable reason whatsoever. Also the whites’ invasion of privacy and brutality meted on the blacks when Mr. Tolson was holding a meeting with the farmers.

 Struggle for equality: The whole movie centres on this as we see that all the debate competitions were anchored on this struggle.

 Courage: This was depicted in the way James Farmer senior handled the arrest of Tolson by standing up to the sheriff and being able to get Tolson out of jail.

 Passion: This was majorly for change and all the presentations of the great debaters showed their level of passion for the change in the status-quo.

 Determination: The team continued to write Harvard University until they were granted audience. Also, when the topic for the debate with Harvard was changed, the debaters still did not relent in their efforts.

 Fear: This was shown in the debate team when they witnessed the brutal killing of a fellow Negro and escaped being mobbed just narrowly.

 Romance: This was between Samantha and Henry on the canoe at the lake.

NARRATIVE FORM

Realised Expectation: It was an expectation realised that James Farmer Junior was caught sneaking into his house at 1:00a.m. by his dad.

Cheated Expectation: The first here was the fact that Tolson did not go to Harvard with the team. A second cheated expectation was that Henry Lowe let James take his expected place at the final competition with Harvard. Also, when Tolson went to Harvard eventually, it was a cheated expectation that he did not wait to congratulate the team.

SUSPENSE


One example of this was when James was watching Tolson’s meeting with the farmers and the white mob came. He found himself on the floor of a stable and was grabbed by the neck by an unknown person who was revealed to be Tolson shortly after.

A second example was when the team was faced by the mob on their trip, everyboby in that scene actually stood still and silent for some seconds.

A third example was when James Farmer Senior hit the white men’s pig and then one of the white men drew his weapon.

FEELING

There is a feeling of passion for change in the debaters, the fear in them as they encounter the injustice against a fellow Negro, confidence in the team by Tolson. Also, there is the feeling of deep likeness that James has for Samantha. Also, the feeling of unhappiness in Samantha after Henry comes home drunk with another girl.

CAUSE AND EFFECT

One of these is that Tolson’s bad experience as a child in relation to his father made him the tough man that he became.

Also, Henry Lowe who lost his parents as a child grew up to be independent.

James Farmer had his family complete and we saw that he was really dependent on them.







SIMILARITY AND REPETITION

One of these was the statement, “The Judge is God, because he determines who wins or losses...” which the great debaters were made to recite at the beginning of their training. This was later recited by James when Henry asked him to take his place at the debate.

Also the way James said “we do what we have to do so that we can do what we want to do” during his conversation with his dad after being appointed a member of the debate team insinuates that it is a recurrent statement in the house.

Thirdly, when Farmer senior was talking with the sheriff, he quoted St. Augustine saying, “an unjust law is no law at all”. This was later repeated by Farmer Junior at the Wiley/Harvard competition.

DIFFERENCES AND VARIATION

From the onset Henry Lowe was shown to be more independent and outspoken than his team mates. He also had a different approach to things even little things like is going to admire the cup while his team mates were showing so much excitement at being in Harvard. This alos showed his level of maturity as opposed to the others.

DEPTH OF STORY

An example of this was when Farmer Junior was imagining himself dancing with Samantha and actually kissing her at the ball.

MIS EN SCENE

The setting aptly depicted the 1930s. The types of cars used all through the movie, the canoe on the lake, the sandy roads, the dressing mode of the cast (even Henry’s hairdo), the locomotive train, the type of ball that was organised, the type of music and dance at the party shown in the first scene of the movie.



CINEMATOGRAPHY

Dolly-in: This movement was used many times in the movie, for instance at the debate between Harlequin College and Wiley College. The camera dollyed-in when the debaters from both sides were speaking.

High Angle: An example was during the debate between Wiley College and Harvard.

Crane: An example of this was at the beginning of the movie when the camera seemed to be flying over water.

Point of View (P.O.V.): An example of this was when Tolson got to Harvard and did not see Henry upstage. The camera started scanning the audience to represent the fact that Tolson was trying to locate Henry.

Finally, this movie is very thorough in its depiction of each of its themes. It also emphasises the importance and advantages of sound historical education and the need for versatility.