The protagonist of the film, Cecil, witnessed his mother being raped by a farmer and his father being shot to death by a farmer when he was a teenager. This experience had a great impact on his character. The survival of a black slave made him feel free to fight for his rights and participate in the defense. The struggle was full of fear and anxiety, which later made him very resistant to his son's participation in the "Freedom Riders" organization. On the other hand, he was full of desire for equal rights more than anyone else.
Middle-aged Cecil entered the White House by chance as a valet. Since then, he has served successive US presidents and their families, including great figures such as Kennedy, Nixon, and Reagan, for the rest of his life. So one of the fun for those who are familiar with American history is to see if these presidents and their wives look alike, and what characteristics do they have in their lives, such as the president I can't call who shits and drinks, and Cecil Madame (Mamma Mia was auditioned by Oprah) kept asking Cecil, and the audience was curious, how many pairs of shoes did Quigeline have? But these are just leftovers from the film.
The main line of the movie is the relationship between Cecil and his wife and eldest son, which is more interesting. The eldest son, Louis, participated in the "community activities" organized by the "Freedom Knights" in college to participate in various movements to maintain black power. He was arrested 16 times. During this period, his relationship with his father Cecil became more and more estranged, and finally broke. Cecil was involved in a radical racial movement and didn't say a word about what his father did. You can see he was a little ashamed of it. It's ridiculous to think about it. Parents used the wages of serving white men to support their sons in the civil rights movement, but This is often the case. Although Lewis' behavior may seem ridiculous, these behaviors make people have to solve it, have to think about it, and have to change. Being a father worries about the safety of his children, and the nature of his job does not allow Cecil to approve of Louis' actions. When he heard the head of the "Freedom Knight" saying that he would take revenge, "they kill one of us, we will kill both of them." Seeing that everyone around him agreed, Louis found that he was wrong at that moment. Well, it's never wrong to use violence to control violence, no matter what the purpose is, or Louis is not someone who can sacrifice others to defend his rights. Then he turned to ask his girlfriend, have you ever loved me? Get is silent. He knows, he can leave.... And Cecil's change happened when the president's wife invited him to take his wife as a guest to a banquet. He has been serving others for more than 30 years, and that time when he saw the waiter as a guest, he didn't know what he felt, discomfort, hypocrisy, and show. Anyway, the old man who has experienced so many things after the banquet is confused. He even finds it strange. In the camera, Cecil is sitting in the middle of a pile of shoes and is lost, just like when he first came to the White House, the difference is He was elated and loved his job back then, but now he is helpless and everything around him loses meaning.
He quit his job and found his son, who was giving a speech, on the street, saying he would join a protest march. Louis said in surprise: You will be arrested and you will lose your job. Cecil said, I have lost you. I'm sorry, son. Then father and son hug. I think this line and fragment can be regarded as classic, which makes people move. In this film, I met Whittaker, a black actor with big eyes and small eyes, and his acting skills are amazing!
The film is also a typical American movie style. I like to laugh at myself. I am deeply impressed by the "Americans turn a blind eye to their own mistakes, but like to point fingers at other countries' affairs" hahaha. When I wrote this, how did I feel that this film is a bit "Forrest Gump", the black version; it's also a bit like "Founding of the Republic", the American version, with big names gathered, and some people say that it is "moving the United States", meow haha, as a A Chinese audience with a blank American history, I was also moved.
View more about Lee Daniels' The Butler reviews
