Rustin

This is so powerful! I loved it. I really enjoyed learning about the person responsible for the successful organization of the 1963 March on Washington. This person carried himself with joyful dignity, pride, and pure professionalism. He stood above most other people with his clarity of mind and clarity of purpose. I am glad to have learned about him.

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The story was brought to life beautifully by a (mostly) well-cast ensemble of people - many of whom I’d never seen before. I loved that. Almost every actor was new to the eyes and therefore made a strong impression. Coleman Domingo just blew me away. What an actor he is!

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One of the exceptions to the great casting is the person chosen to play Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Just... no. Also, I think Chris Rock was poorly chosen. I have a hard time believing him when he is not in a comedic role.

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Beyond those minor nit-picks, there is so much to love about this movie. I really enjoyed seeing a movie set in this time period. I swooned when he walked into that house party and there were people in the middle of the room actually dancing! Remember those days!?

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I’m really liking this trend of making movies about people who were historically important but not taught about in school. In that way, this movie reminds me of Chevalier, a virtuoso musician who was written out of history. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LtCIImfSCk

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I wholeheartedly recommend this movie!

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p.s. The only thing that would have made this movie better was if they would have showed the true interaction between Mahalia Jackson and Dr. King at the podium that day.

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She could feel that Dr. King was losing the audience as he read from his prepared speech. She yelled at him, "Martin! Tell the people about that dream you had!". And Dr. King began riffing what would become his most famous speech.

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