Lee Daniels’ The Butler

Very loosely based on the life of a real White House butler (Eugene Allen), the arc of “The Butler” takes its protagonist Cecil Gaines (Forest Whitaker) from his life as the son of a wretchedly poor sharecropper in Georgia’s cotton fields to service in a Southern home, then to a Washington hotel and, ultimately, to the White House in 1957 (with the Eisenhower Administration), where he is informed by his superior: ” There is no place for politics in the White House.” His domestic life is graced with a vibrant wife, Gloria (Oprah Winfrey) and two vigorous sons; his work life spans the terms of eight presidents until retirement in 1986.

The trailer for “The Butler” (which has to carry director Lee Daniels’ name for copyright reasons) gives the impression of a dutiful Gaines witnessing any number of historic events, but the film is really a survey of the American civil rights history seen through the prism of one African-American family.

The family story starts harshly (the brutal South in the 1920's where Cecil’s father is killed and he left an orphan) then turns both sentimental and believable as the young man works hard, gets a few breaks, then begins a family and lands the White House position. That domestic story is the heart of the picture. This is where Winfrey shines, as the adoring wife who still strays because of her husband’s demanding workload, only to finally recognize his worth. These domestic elements have much of the flavor—in a good way--of "42," the Jackie Robinson biopic of this past spring.

The overview of the civil rights trajectory is intentional but somewhat forced: The family's oldest son, Louis (David Oyelowo) becomes a civil rights activist and is implausibly involved in almost every iconic moment of the struggle, from Freedom Riding, to lunch counter sit-ins, to seconding MLK in Memphis, to commitment as a Black Panther. And in all these guises, he generates predictable criticism from his more conservative father, willing to go along to get along. Their relationship is both a of précis of civil rights history and a point-counterpoint of the Movement centered on just one fellow. Then, to punch another historic ticket, the Gaines’ younger son must go to Vietnam and die there.

To be honest, this narrative approach feels very much like a less comic “Forrest Gump” or “Zelig.” Also reminiscent of “Forrest Gump”--risibly so, in fact--is the butler’s presence, in one way or the other, at so many crucial conversations on civil rights matters in the White House over 30 years. Some of this feels just obligatory. Sometimes, however, the dramatic works well. The best example is when director Daniels brilliantly intercuts shots of attacks on Louis and others at lunch counters contrasted with Cecil assiduously arranging settings for a White House formal dinner. This is strong stuff: beatings and spitting-in-the-face interposed with studied silence and luminous silver.

The butler’s submissive role offers a challenge to Whitaker. So often we see scenes of Cecil in formal White House circumstances, formal uniform impeccable, shoes gleaming, white gloves spotless, with a stare into space that conveys...what, some kind of subtle subversion about what he hears or just the standard servility of the servant? It’s hard to tell. His human personality, however, melts nicely in the scenes of family life where he can interact with wife and kids, sometimes warmly, sometimes with anger.

“The Butler’s” celebrity cameo casting of several president's is questionable, especially if the viewer (like me) has any sense of what these real presidents were like. On at least two occasions (especially when Robin Williams impersonates Ike), my preview audience laughed out loud at the absurdity of casting. Each “presidential” appearance is flawed, and, frankly, undercuts the seriousness of the story Lee Daniels presumably wants to tell. James Marsden is too short as JFK and the accent is shaky. Likewise Liev Schrieber as LBJ (he talks Texan via Manhattan). Poor John Cusack neither looks nor talks like Richard Nixon and seems at sea in the role. Perhaps Alan Rickman (an Englishman) fairs best as Reagan. At least he didn’t arouse laughs.

The casting of black actors proves more believable, such as Lenny Kravitz and Cuba Gooding, Jr. as fellow White House butlers (played with wit and sympathy) and Terence Howard as a dodgy neighbor with designs on Gaines’ wife. Young David Oyelowo works hard as the earnest but errant Louis, but his protean shifts are hard to make convincing; he becomes more of a running symbol than a real personality.

Finally, “Lee Daniels’ The Butler” is yet another Washington movie, right? Well, as so often happens these days, not in location terms: the film was entirely shot in New Orleans.

One positive element of the film is its didactic function. For those too young or too little tutored, the pieces of civil rights history “The Butler” displays could be illuminating and trigger further inquiry by them. This would be one valuable take-away from a film that could have been a more credible drama of one piece of our history.

This film is rated “PG-13” and runs 132 minutes.

(August 2013)