Cast:
Cynthia Erivo (Araminta "Minty" Ross / Harriet Tubman), Leslie Odom Jr. (William Still), Joe Alwyn (Gideon Brodess), Clarke Peters (Ben Ross), Vanessa Bell Calloway (Rit Ross), Vondie Curtis-Hall (Reverend Samuel Green), Jennifer Nettles (Eliza Brodess), Janelle Monáe (Marie Buchanon), Omar Dorsey (Bigger Long), Tim Guinee (Thomas Garrett), Zackary Momoh (John Tubman), Deborah Ayorinde (Rachel Ross), and Henry Hunter Hall (Walter) Directed by Kasi Lemmons.
Review:
"I don't wake up every day saying I'm a black woman because it's too given, but I wake up every day feeling like an artist and I feel I'm an artist."
Admittedly, maintaining a career as a director is no small feat for folks with talent, whether as a man or a woman. Kasi Lemmons was born in St. Louis, Missouri but raised in Massachusetts, complete with an early interest in movies. She attended New York University Tisch School of the Arts before doing study at UCLA. Lemmons first was an actress, starting in television in the late 1980s along with making her film debut in School Daze (1988). She made a handful of appearances in film and television over the next few years, most notably with Candyman (1992). Lemmons directed her first film with Eve's Bayou (1997), a Southern Gothic drama that was a general success on the independent level. Lemmons has directed five further films in the 25 year-span since that film, such as Talk to Me (2007) and Black Nativity (2013). One is never sure how a movie can lend a portrait to a famous name in history, especially with Harriet Tubman (born Araminta Ross), who did indeed make an escape from Maryland to Philadelphia that covered roughly 100 miles (although she actually tried to bring along two of her brothers on the trip as opposed to it being a solo trip - they quit not long into the trip). She rescued roughly seventy people that were born into slavery in her native land of Maryland, whether that meant secret travel by night to the North or in later times, British North America (and yes, she did carry a gun). The Civil War led to her serving as a cook, a nurse, and later a scout for the Union Army (her service did not merit a pension for decades, and when it did come, it did not mention her work as a spy). She lived long enough to also take part in the fight for the right for women to vote, living into her nineties before passing away in 1913. The most mainstream depiction of Tubman before this film was a television miniseries in A Woman Called Moses that was shown in 1978 with Cicely Tyson as Tubman. Not that the film is to be judged entirely on the merits of 100% historical consistency, but one can judge for themselves how to interpret a film that features Alwyn, Monae, and Dorsey each playing characters not based in fact. The screenplay was done by Gregory Allen Howard, who is listed as co-writer of the story with Lemmons.
Honestly, the movie is just fine. It is comprised of a handful of tropes you would probably see coming from a biopic of 125 minutes. But what exactly does one expect? Well, with the litany of biopics involving men or talking more about the time of 19th century America, I suppose another biopic about someone as remarkable as Harriet Tubman will be fine enough to please those interested in cut-and-dry American stories. It is sincere enough in its direction while having a solid lead performance to make it one of those quality movies that you might rent for a time. Erivo soars fairly well when it comes to handling the lofty expectations laid out in playing a historical character, which basically means she blends into the role without distraction. Tenacity and devout faith (the real Tubman was quite religious and also prone to experiencing visions, as depicted in the film) are key to understanding Tubman in the eyes of Erivo that emanate the power of deliverance. The rest of the cast proves fine, although the dialogue occasionally puts them at risk for wooden traps. Odom makes a fine headliner among the historical character support (the real Still was indeed an abolitionist that was once called "The Father of the Underground Railroad", and his 1872 publishing of records of the people who went through the Railroad is key to understanding the process). Peters pops in to provide warmth against Erivo. Alwyn is at the very least a semi-compelling adversary composite. Others like Monae and Dorsey don't fare as well, but again, there isn't a weak factor in the film, which generally moves on a set pace that makes the Underground Railroad (a series of routes and safe houses) seem quite interesting. As a whole, the movie is generally diligent about keeping focus on its subject without turning mundane or spinning itself away from historical basis too much. It is a fairly entertaining movie that honors its subject with fitting reverence that does exactly what it hopes to do, albeit one that operates within a certain boundary of range. If its gloss of history is that important to keep in our memories for important women in history, it will likely work out just right for a watch.
Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.
Next Time: Lady Bird.
