The Birth of a Nation

I don't know how much of this story is actually true or believed to have happened Decent enough movie There is one scene that had me cringing slightly But mostly implied violence

The Birth of a Nation is a film designed to get people talking. It wants people discussing Nat Turner, it wants to remind us of the atrocities of slavery, and it wants to worship its central character and present a detailed story of his life. It achieves all of that. It does so with a slowly paced plot and a thinly written cast of characters. Is it still, at times, quite powerful? Of course it is; the subject matter would have to be fumbled to a great extent for it not to be.

A fairly competent movie about Nat Turner and his slave rebellion, which don't have a whole lot of coverage in cinema. But is it truly worth making? Not really. Too many liberties are taken with the story for it to be valuable for it's history, and not enough time is spent on the actual rebellion to be anything other than just a lesser version of "12 Years a Slave."

A sprawling, frustrating and emotionally powerful film. Noticeably made by a first-time director - to say it beats its viewers over the head with its themes would be an understatement. There's a strange dissonance between the heavy focus on Turner's preaching and the almost dashed-off portrayal of the actual rebellion. Even outside of real-world controversy, the added-in gender dynamics are disgusting. But at moments it is purely transcendent, and at times devastating. Uneven but fascinating.

Nate Parker's emotional performance, helped along the way by beautiful cinematography, carries the uneven but still painfully powerful film to its riveting, horrible conclusion.

TIL Nat Turner's life was a beat-for-beat, shot-for-shot ripoff of Braveheart.

A well made film that is sure to cause a lot of debate. I'm not sure I agree with every perspective Nate Parker expressed but it's a good conversation to have.

It wasn't as inspiring to me as it was trying to be, but still a pretty decent movie about an unbelievable moment in history.

At times it's good. At others it's directed by Nate Parker. It's like 12 Years a Slave with more story and meaning but less context or quality. The end sucks.

Writer-actor-star Nate Parker's controversial recreation of Nat Turner's 1831 slave uprising couldn't be more pertinent - or more powerful

A little too black and white for me ... Sorry, I really shouldn't try to write mini reviews when I'm so tired that I can't come up with anything good.

Subtle it ain't, and that's not the only problem it shares with any given Mel Gibson history. But hey, any movie that's ever claimed to be Based On A True Story digs its own hole, and why are you only noticing this now? It has enough moments of beauty and raw anger to make it worthwhile, and there's something nicely subversive about watching cute white American children demand the execution of our hero.

Despite the cries of social justice types who see racism everywhere, a highly acclaimed film showcasing the horrors of slavery isn't a rarity, so does this bring anything new to the table? Yes. Though the superior 12 Years touched on it, this does a better job highlighting the Bible's endorsement of slavery & how it was used to keep blacks oppressed. It's also a stunning debut. If there's a complaint it's that it takes too long for Turner to go Charles Bronson on truly loathesome white people.

Superb indictment of racism circa 1800s is powerfully performed by its cast, and brought to the screen beautifully by debuter Parker; bests the more lauded 12 YEARS A SLAVE by exploring the societal trends (especially religion) which condone and encourage violence both from the oppressors and oppressed. The wider scope makes for a much more satisfying (and ultimately contemplative) experience.

It feels like a paint by numbers slave film, but it's competently made and there's some good performances.

Powerful, stirring and deeply moving it's a shame The Birth of a Nation is so shrouded in controversy because it's an important if grim piece of film-making. It does occasionally become too solemn and earnest for its own good and I'm not sure it's completely accurate historically but I liked it.

I did like how it didn't really depict any white people with any sense of dignity cuz they don't deserve it.

Black Liberation Theology illustrates that African-Americans have a unique view of the Bible--as their experiences in the United States mirror the injustices that Jesus Christ faced. This film is less a historical period piece and more a work that dramatizes that philosophy. It’s a nice indie film with discussions on slave master ideology, political violence, and government dehumanization. The central romance needs some work, and the ending’s messianic imagery is too much. Still, recommended.

Quite good.

THE BIRTH OF A NATION is a tale of two films. One a powerful rejoinder to the history of slavery as portrayed in American cinema and the one of the boldest expressions of black discontent ever endorsed by Hollywood. The other is a template-driven antebellum BRAVEHEART that sands some of the rough edges off Nat Turner's personal journey. The cause is complex and fascinating; the hero not so much.

I watched this movie 20 years ago, but it was much longer, and it was called "Braveheart" then. I'm sure in the directors' cut, Nat yells, "Freeeeeeeeeeeeedooooom" in the end.

Behold! The 3rd rail film of 2016 is here! Young white supremacists throughout the Internet are shouting from the rooftops that the director, producer, writer and star has a rapey past! They decry the actual historical rebellion as gleefully butchering white women and children! And on both IMDB and Criticker, the original KKK-lauding 1915 film of the same name has a higher score than this one. Things that make you go hmm. Only one man can make American cinema great again!

BRING ME MY HORSE! BRING ME...CARACTACUS!

Another one about slavery, i thought....... well not really.This one provokes different questions and different way of thinking about often explored subject. Beautiful cinematography.

While competently made and admirably performed, it's admittedly hard to look at Nate Parker's passion project, 'The Birth of a Nation', objectively, because of Parker's insistence on deviating from history for a more convenient narrative. At worst, it's a dark reflection of real-world controversy. At best, it's cowardly filmmaking.

Viewed October 15, 2016. So many of these scenes are so clumsily assembled that it never builds any momentum, about 90% of it looks like it could have been made for the History Channel, and Parker has a disturbing predilection to direct every scene to his close-up. Seriously, there are so many close-ups here, even in scenes where it is wholly inappropriate (like, yeah, Nat Turner's wife telling her husband the story of her rape).

The Birth of a Nation dramatizes the real-life slave revolt of Nat Turner. It was a 48-hour onslaught that left more than 60 white slaveholders dead, while the ensuing retribution resulted in in the deaths of more than 200 black men, women and children--some of who were already free, and many of whom weren't involved in the rebellion at all. That's a pretty problematic narrative to draw from, and the positives we find here are interwoven within that violent story's inherent complexity.

While it fails to do its subject true justice, The Birth of a Nation largely succeeds thanks to assured direction and a solid performance from Nate Parker.

i thought it was very accurate of the times

This update to The Birth of a Nation isn't the "right" version of history, but its message is timely and provocative.

A story worth telling, this was a little disappointing and lacked impact because it didn't always highlight the small important things but lost itself in the bloody violence.

The story of Nat Turner's life and the slave rebellion he led, which made him an icon for future generations. The film gives you little idea of why, in part owing to a very weak script with little sense of character and less of history. The production is solid, given the low budget, and Nate Parker does reasonable duty as star and director (though he has proved the film's greatest liability), but given the passion that must have been involved, it's a hollow and largely unaffecting enterprise.

As an actor Nate Parker is good but as a director he is not. At least, his first feature film shows us that. Because there is a strong and disturbing pages of history but it does not affect you as it supposed be. I am definetely supporting you too watch this but it's not because the movie itself but the history.

Another brutal slavery movie. And that's where it ends up... as just another brutal slavery movie.