Bowen reviews 2016’s Birth of a Nation

Note: this review is spoiler-free, but contains plot details derivable from the film’s trailers and teasers.

Borrowing the name of the 1915 film depicting the heroism of the Ku Klux Klan in the post-Civil War South, 2016’s Birth of a Nation “remake” attempted to rectify and clarify the atrocities of slavery and the lengths many slaves would go to in order to impact change, while also narrating a biopic of slave and eventual slave revolt leader Nat Turner. Despite technical expertise, the film lacked in effective storytelling elements and often bored the audience.

Writer, director, producer, and star Nate Parker’s first feature-length film displayed Parker’s technical skills behind the camera– the appealing and visually stimulating shots and images beautifully captured the film’s landscapes and scenery. There were few insert shots, but each carried with it a powerful or moving metaphor that supplied the movie with a more robust meaning than the narrative alone let on. The film’s music was well-made but unremarkable, which didn’t do the experience any favors. Nina Simone’s “Strange Fruit” was the only standout piece; delivered during an emotional scene, it is effective in unsettling the audience, but only in accompaniment to the on-screen images.

The film’s sets were extremely period accurate, as well as visually appealing. The squalor of slave communities served as a stark contrast to the clean, collected atmosphere of the plantation homes, visually displaying the disparity between the two social strata of the Antebellum South. Similarly, the costumes, akin to rags, worn by slaves further depicted the inhuman treatment of Nat Turner and his family.

While visiting a nearby plantation to preach, Nat Turner witnesses the force-feeding of a disobedient slave. Unwilling to eat, the slave is stabbed in the back of the throat with a rail spike, and grits are poured down his throat with a funnel. The chunks of bloody food and vomit that fall out of his mouth are both one of the most graphic and disturbing images in the film and a display of the expertise of the makeup design. The bloody scars left by a whip, the ashiness of dry skin, and gunshot wounds are also a testament to Parker’s dedication to historical accuracy. The makeup was often so true-to-life that it was disgusting, disturbing, and borderline unwatchable.

A final show of Parker’s mastery of the historical atmosphere, props, however minor, help to convince the audience of the film’s authenticity. Guns, carriages, whips, wooden bowls and utensils, all common props in the film, are par for the course in the Antebellum South.

The film’s plot, however, doesn’t receive the same marks its technical quality does. The action lags early on, especially as Turner spends years traveling with his master to local plantations, preaching to slaves messages of obedience and piety. The exposition drags on for the vast majority of the movie, and the true rising action does not begin until the last 20 minutes, making the end feel rushed and incomplete. The climax, Turner’s raid on “Jericho,” seems almost thrown in, comprising only 2-3 minutes of the film, within the last 7 minutes before the end credits roll, and the resolution is all but nonexistent, almost an afterthought in Parker’s mind. While the film could be considered a biopic, it often focuses on the wrong details and leaves the audience uninterested.

While Nate Parker’s directorial debut was intended to cause controversy and discomfort in the audience with a gripping narrative and stunning visual sequences, it often left them in a state between disgusted and bored. While it is an important story to tell and a pivotal part of our country’s history, Birth of a Nation is a film that leaves the audience never wanting to see it again, much less buy it on Blu Ray.