Pat Young's Review of New Film Harriet

[O' Be Joyful]

This was pitched as a historical film -- and that it is not.

I am worried about younger children going to see this film - and thinking "Bigger Long" was real

Sorta like Buster on Little Round Top. And if they do not delve deeper...

I share your fears, but not only do movies lead or extend tropes they can also lead to further investigation... Let us wish for investigation and hope that more research will end with truth.

 

[O' Be Joyful]

Charles Whittlesey(of Lost Battalion fame), chunking the material for the students who struggled. "What do we call the war damages?" I asked, hoping for "reparations" since it was the highlighted word in the text. One of the students said "PTSD" which was a better answer and related to the material on Whittlesey we had just covered. Heartwarming! Even better was one of the students who struggled with basic reading helping another student with a question.

Keep it up, Matt.

 

[O' Be Joyful]

Charles Whittlesey(of Lost Battalion fame)

I have watched the movie more than a few times and it never leaves me less than... moved. And it caused me to want to learn more. It was an arresting emotional experience.

Was it all truthful? No. But I had to find that for myself.

 

[Joshism]

Weren't all the black soldiers in "Glory" either composites or wholly fictional? Still an excellent movie.

I've been reluctant to see "Harriet" because the trailers gave me a bad vibe, like they were trying to turn Tubman into an action superhero. She undoubtedly had a great deal of courage and determination, but it seemed over the top. Were these trailers out of context and the movie is more grounded?

There's also the matter of the voices Tubman began hearing after suffering a serious head injury. If you want to portray someone with head trauma as thinking God is talking to them okay, but if you want to portay brain damage as factual divine guidance in a historical epic then no sale. How does this movie handle that subject?

 

[Matt McKeon]

Weren't all the black soldiers in "Glory" either composites or wholly fictional? Still an excellent movie.

I've been reluctant to see "Harriet" because the trailers gave me a bad vibe, like they were trying to turn Tubman into an action superhero. She undoubtedly had a great deal of courage and determination, but it seemed over the top. Were these trailers out of context and the movie is more grounded?

There's also the matter of the voices Tubman began hearing after suffering a serious head injury. If you want to portray someone with head trauma as thinking God is talking to them okay, but if you want to portay brain damage as factual divine guidance in a historical epic then no sale. How does this movie handle that subject?

Joan of Arc.