The Great Debaters

Plot

Based on a true story, the plot revolves around the efforts of debate coach Melvin B. Tolson at Wiley College, a historically black college related to the Methodist Episcopal Church, South (now The United Methodist Church), to place his team on equal footing with whites in the American South during the 1930s. Jim Crow laws enforced racial discrimination and lynch mobs were still a risk for African Americans. The Wiley team eventually succeeds to the point where they debate a Harvard University team.

The movie explores racial social issues in Texas during the Great Depression, from the day-to-day insults that African Americans endured to the risk of lynchings. The activist James Farmer is portrayed; at the age of 14, he was admitted to Wiley and selected for its debate team after completing high school. (He later co-founded the Congress of Racial Equality). Another character on the debate team, Samantha Booke, is based on Henrietta Bell Wells, an acclaimed poet and the only female member of the 1930 Wiley team. She participated in the first collegiate interracial debate in the US.

The key line of dialogue, used several times, is a famous paraphrase of theologian St. Augustine of Hippo: "An unjust law is no law at all". (Martin Luther King, Jr. later made this the central thesis of his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail").

Another major line, repeated in slightly different versions according to context, suggests doing what you "have to do" in order that we "can do" what we "want to do." In all instances, these vital lines are spoken by the characters of teenager James L. Farmer and his father James L. Farmer Sr, who taught at Wiley.

Historical notes

The film depicts the Wiley Debate team beating Harvard College in the 1930s. The real Wiley team instead defeated the University of Southern California, which at the time was the reigning debating champion. Wiley was not allowed to officially call itself champion, despite defeating the reigning champion, because it was not a full member of the debate society; blacks were not admitted until after World War II.

Cast

• Denzel Washington as Melvin B. Tolson
• Forest Whitaker as James L. Farmer Sr.
• Nate Parker as Henry Lowe
• Jurnee Smollett as Samantha Booke
• Denzel Whitaker as James L. Farmer Jr.
• Jermaine Williams as Hamilton Burgess
• Gina Ravera as Ruth Tolson
• John Heard as Sheriff Dozier
• Kimberly Elise as Pearl Farmer
• Devyn A. Tyler as Helen Farmer
• Trenton McClain Boyd as Nathaniel Farmer
• Jackson Walker as Pig Owner
• Tim Parati as Pig Farmer
• Justice Leak as Harland Osbourne
• Robert X. Golphin as Dunbar Reed
• Damien Leake as Wilson
• Frank L. Ridley as Security Guard
• Glen Powell as Preston Whittington

Release

The Great Debaters was released in theaters on December 25, 2007.

The release of the film coincided with a nationally stepped-up effort by urban debate leagues to get hundreds of inner-city and financially challenged schools to establish debate programs. Cities of focus included Denver, Philadelphia, and San Francisco.

On December 19, 2007, Denzel Washington announced a $1 million donation to Wiley College so they could re-establish their debate team. June 2007, after completing filming at Central High School, Grand Cane, Louisiana, Washington donated $10,000 to Central High School.

Home media

The Great Debaters was released on DVD on May 13, 2008.

Reception

Box office

The Great Debaters debuted at No. 11 in its first weekend with a total of $6,005,180 from 1,171 venues. The film grossed $30,236,407 in the US.

Critical response

Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 65 out of 100 based on reviews from 32 critics.

Carrie Rickey of The Philadelphia Inquirer named it the 5th best film of 2007 and Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times named it the 9th best film of 2007.

Some critics have criticized the film for "playing it safe." John Monaghan of the Detroit Free Press stated, "Serious moviegoers, especially those attracted by the movie's aggressive Oscar campaign, will likely find the package gorgeously wrapped, but intellectually empty."

Motion picture-historian Leonard Maltin, however, hailed the movie as "Inspiring...plays with the facts but, despite its at-times-formulaic storytelling, shows us how education and determination can help ordinary people surmount even the most formidable obstacles."

Accolades

• Won: Image Award for Outstanding Motion Picture
• Won: Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture: Denzel Washington
• Won: Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture: Jurnee Smollett
• Won: Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture: Forest Whitaker, Nate Parker, Denzel Whitaker
• Won: Stanley Kramer Award
• Nominated: Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama
• Nominated: Image Award for Outstanding Director in a Motion Picture: Denzel Washington
• Nominated: Golden Reel Award for Best Music Sound Editing in a Feature Film

Soundtrack

The songs for the soundtrack to the film were hand-picked by Denzel Washington from over 1000 candidates. It contains remakes of traditional blues and gospel songs from the 1920s and 1930s by artists including Sharon Jones, Alvin Youngblood Hart, David Berger, and the Carolina Chocolate Drops. It features favorites, such as "Step It Up and Go", "Nobody's Fault But Mine", and the Duke Ellington classic, "Delta Serenade". Varèse Sarabande released a separate album of the film's score, composed by James Newton Howard and Peter Golub.

The complete soundtrack album includes the following songs:

; Track listing

1. "My Soul is a Witness" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart & Sharon Jones
2. "That's What My Baby Likes" – Sharon Jones, Alvin Youngblood Hart & Teenie Hodges
3. "I've Got Blood in My Eyes for You" – The Carolina Chocolate Drops & Alvin "Youngblood" Hart
4. "Step It Up and Go" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart & Teenie Hodges
5. "It's Tight Like That" – Sharon Jones, Alvin Youngblood Hart & Teenie Hodges
6. "Busy Bootin'" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart & The Carolina Chocolate Drops
7. "City of Refuge" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart & The Carolina Chocolate Drops
8. "Two Wings" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart, Sharon Jones w/Billy Rivers and the Angelic Voices of Faith
9. "Delta Serenade" – David Berger & The Sultans of Swing
10. "Rock n' Rye" – David Berger & The Sultans of Swing
11. "Wild About That Thing" – Sharon Jones, Alvin Youngblood Hart, & Teenie Hodges
12. "Nobody's Fault but Mine" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart & The Carolina Chocolate Drops
13. "How Long Before I Change My Clothes" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart
14. "We Shall Not Be Moved" – Sharon Jones w/Billy Rivers and the Angelic Voices of Faith
15. "Up Above My Head" – Sharon Jones w/Billy Rivers and the Angelic Voices of Faith
16. "The Shout" – Art Tatum
17. "Begrüssung" – Marian Anderson

References

• Original article about Melvin Tolson's Wiley College debate team.
• Another very detailed article on the team and the film.

References

1. "The Great Debaters". [[Box Office Mojo]].
2. "BlackNews.com – American Legacy Magazine's Story The Great Debaters Turns from Pages to the Big Screen Directed By and Starring Denzel Washington and Produced By Oprah Winfrey".
3. "The Great Debaters – Official Site". Thegreatdebatersmovie.com.
4. Martin, Douglas. (2008-03-12). "Henrietta Bell Wells, a Pioneering Debater, Dies at 96". The New York Times.
5. (2007-12-24). "The Great Debater's". [[Roger Ebert]].
6. "[https://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/05/education/05wiley.html For Struggling Black College, Hopes of a Revival]." ''[[The New York Times]]'', December 5, 2007.
7. "thegreatdebaters.org – thegreatdebaters Resources and Information.".
8. "National Association for the Urban Debate Leagues". Naudl.org.
9. (December 20, 2007). "'Debaters' college gets $1-million gift". [[Los Angeles Times]].
10. "Great Debaters, The (2007): Reviews". [[CBS Interactive]].
11. "Metacritic: 2007 Film Critic Top Ten Lists". [[Metacritic]].
12. Ebert, Roger. (19 December 2012). "The year's ten best films and other shenanigans {{!}} Roger Ebert {{!}} Roger Ebert".
13. "The Great Debaters Movie Reviews, Pictures – Rotten Tomatoes". Rottentomatoes.com.
14. Monaghan, John. (2007-12-25). "Resolved: Needs more debate". [[Detroit Free Press]].
15. Maltin's TV, Movie, & Video Guide
16. (2007-12-13). "HOLLYWOOD FOREIGN PRESS ASSOCIATION 2008 GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2007". goldenglobes.org.
17. ""Denzel Washington Hand Picks Songs for New Film" – The Insider".
18. "The Great Debaters (2007)".
19. [https://www.amazon.com/Great-Debaters-Various-Artists/dp/B000Y2WAY8 "The Great Debaters (Soundtrack)"] on Amazon.com