The Butler

One of the quiz questions in the times to come will be, “What is common to – Robin Williams, John Cussack, James Marsden, Liev Schrieber and Alan Rickman”? They all played United States Presidents in Lee Daniels’ The Butler.  Of course their roles were restricted to about 2-5 minutes of screen time but they are on the record right? But what they did miss out on was someone to play Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter.  Wonder why?

The highlight of The Butler would be the superb performance of one Forest Whitaker and an outstanding one from the owner of Harpo Studios.  Cecil Gaines (Forest Whitaker) comes from an ordinary sharecropper’s family somewhere in the 1920s.  He serves for the white family while his father works it out on the fields.  He runs away from home and finds work at a bakery shop that he attempts to steal from.

Over time, his work is appreciated by his master who sends him packing to Washington DC where he works at a reputed hotel.  It is here that his skills are picked up on by Freddie Fallows – the maître d' at the White House.  Fallows offers him a job as a butler under the strict instruction, “We have no tolerance for politics at the White House”.  A wonderful line that is conspicuous even in the trailer.

Cecil then goes on to serve 8 presidents, 5 of whom are played by the names mentioned earlier in this article - Dwight D. Eisenhower (Robin Williams), Richard Nixon (John Cussack), James Marsden (John F Kennedy), Lyndon Johnson (Liev Schrieber) and Ronald Reagen (Alan Rickman).  The only one who sticks out like a sore thumb and seems misplaced is John Cusack.  Especially with the effort made with his nose.  Seems more funny than serious.

Daniels covers several aspects of the life of Gaines.  Beginning with his love life with Gloria (Oprah Winfrey) who he meets when working at the bakery.  Daniels, to his credit doesn’t focus only on Cecil’s life.  There is a lot of emphasis given to the eccentricities of Gloria and that makes for a very interesting watch as well.  I haven’t seen much of Oprah Winfrey on celluloid and The Butler makes you feel that she should be indulging herself a bit more in this aspect.

Daniels also ensures that he covers the controversial aspects during each president’s term with special emphasis on the period that involves Martin Luther King & eventually The Black Panther forces.  While doing so, he covers the aspect of Cecils’ son, Louis (David Oyelowo) and the troubled relationship between the two.

While The Butler has narration that is normally expected of a biography, it slows down to a kind of drawl at times.  It could have been much pacier and more importantly shorter.  132 minutes is not easy to sit through when you have a movie that is bordering on being a documentary.  Worth a watch primarily due to the strong performances from Whitaker and Winfrey.  7 on 10.

Watch the trailer on http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi707045657/?ref_=tt_ov_vi