The Great Debaters [WS]

Director: Denzel Washington Denzel Washington

Overview

Drawing inspiration from the true story of a temperamental debate coach who molded the students of a small East Texas college into a formidable team that gave even Harvard's elite squad a run for their money, Denzel Washington's The Great Debaters features the director himself as the ambitious educator, and Forest Whitaker as the resentful father of a student whose loyalties now lie almost exclusively with his coach. Melvin B. Tolson (Washington) is the kind of educator who truly recognizes the remarkable power of knowledge. An outspoken Wiley College professor who boldly challenged the discriminatory Jim Crow laws of the 1930s, Tolson's recognizes that his young debate students possess the spark of a new generation. Convinced that they could invoke great change if given the confidence and tools needed to do so, the tireless educator implores his students to take responsibility for the future while furtively attempting to protect them from his clandestine role as an organizer for the Southern Tenant Farmers Union. Chief among Tolson's promising young students is a 14-year-old prodigy named James Farmer, Jr. (Denzel Whitaker). Farmer's father, James Sr. (Forest Whitaker), is a renowned scholar and an important presence in the emerging student's life. Yet despite his formidable reputation, James Sr. has not yet learned how to truly harness the power of knowledge through action and assertion. James Jr. has seen the raving effects of racism all around him, and longs to live in a future where no one must be in fear simply because of the color of their skin. Other talented debaters on Tolson's team include fiercely independent student Henry Lowe (Nate Parker), and Samantha Brooke (Jurnee Smollett) -- the first ever female ever to join the Wiley College debate team. While most educators may not have recognized the remarkable potential of assembling such a disparate team, Tolson's unique vision truly set him apart from the pack as the team begins to experience a series of consecutive victories on their road to challenging Harvard at the National Championships.

Product Details

Release Date:	02/01/2019
UPC:	0796019810708
Original Release:	2007
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	Weinstein Company
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:04:00

Special Features

Deleted scenes; The Great Debaters: An historical perspective; "That's What My Baby Likes," music video; "My Soul Is a Witness," music video

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Denzel Washington	Melvin B. Tolson
Nate Parker	Henry Lowe
Denzel Whitaker	James Farmer Jr.,Dr. James Farmer Sr.
Jermaine Williams	Hamilton Burgess
Gina Ravera	Ruth Tolson
John Heard	Sheriff Dozier
Kimberly Elise	Pearl Farmer
Devyn Tyler	Helen Farmer
Trenton McClain Boyd	Nathaniel Farmer
Ritchie Montgomery	Deputy
Jackson Walker	Pig Owner
Tim Parati	Pig Farmer
Robert X. Golphin	Dunbar Reed
Justice Leak	Harland Osbourne
Glen Powell Jr.	Harvard Debater No. 1
Brad Watkins	Harvard Debater No. 2
Brian Smiar	Harvard Dean
Damien Leake	Wilson
Gordon Danniels	Paul Quinn Debate Judge
Bonnie Johnson	Dr. Jennings
Charissa Allen	Benita
Michael Beasley	Trudell
George Wilson	Samuel
Fahnlohnee Harris	Clementine
J.D. Evermore	Captain Wainwright
Sharon Jones	Lila
Frank Ridley	Security Guard
Jeremiah Kissel	Radio Announcer at Harvard Debate
Jack Radosta	White Man at Lynching
Marcus Lyle Brown	Howard Debater #1,Howard Debater #1
Jurnee Smollett-Bell	Samantha Booke
Denzel	Actor
Voltaire Rico Sterling	Paul Quinn Debater #1
Steve Rider	Paul Quinn Debater #2
Gordon Daniels	Paul Quinn Debate Judge
Donny Boaz	Oklahoma City College Debater #1
Sam Whisnant	Oklahoma City College Debater #2
Gary Mathis	Enormous Man
Harold Evans	William Taylor
Kelvin Payton	Joseph
Southey Blanton	White Labor Organizer
Michael Mattison	White Sharecropper #1
Jeff Braun	White Sharecropper #2
Milton R. Gipson	Prairie View Professor
Alvin Youngblood Hart	Juke Joint Musician #1
Dominique Flemons	Juke Joint Musician #2
Justin Robinson	Juke Joint Musician #3
Rhiannon Giddens	Juke Joint Musician #4
Ahmad Powell	Fisk Professor
Gregory Nicotero	Puppeteer
Gino Crognale	Puppeteer
Michael Deak	Puppeteer
Alex Diaz	Puppeteer
Gavin Greenaway	Conductor
Peter Golub	Composer
James Newton Howard	Composer
John Newton Howard	Composer

Technical Credits

Robert Eisele

Jeffrey Porro

Denzel Washington	Director
Denise Chamian	Casting
Jack Lynch	Special Effects
Joe Roth	Producer
Kate Forte	Producer
Oprah Winfrey	Producer
Robert Eisele	Screenwriter
Stephen Pope	Stunts
Todd Black	Producer
Jeffrey Porro	Screenwriter
David Crockett	Executive Producer
Gregg Brazzel	Stunts
Russell Towery	Stunts
Robert Powell	Stunts
Jim Henry	Stunts
Kevin Beard	Stunts
Thirl Haston	Stunts
Jack Little	Stunts
Bob Weinstein	Executive Producer,Executive Producer
Alan Rawlins	Key Grip
Eric Norris	Stunts
Bobby Beckles	Stunts
Lex Geddings	Stunts
Guss Williams	Stunts
Tim Antwine	Stunts
Joe Williams	Stunts
Willie Burton	Sound/Sound Designer
Dorian Cheah	Sound/Sound Designer
David Bomba	Producer

Editorial Reviews

Denzel Washington impresses both in front of the camera and behind it in The Great Debaters, his second feature as a director. Although debate teacher Melvin Tolson is a stock character from Washington's repertoire -- a firebrand given to rousing speeches and a stoical sense of righteousness -- it's also a typically strong performance. Besides, it's really the other characters and details that make The Great Debaters shine. For one, production designer David J. Bomba and art director John Jensen have given us a handsomely dressed and wholly authentic version of East Texas and Boston of the 1930s, which simultaneously feels lived in and pops off the screen. But it's the actors who populate that setting who bring it to life. Most impressive may be 16-year-old Denzel Whitaker -- who, despite his name, bears no relation to either of the film's co-stars (Washington and Forest Whitaker, though the young actor was actually named after Washington). Young Whitaker commands his range of emotions in a way that's truly unusual for an actor his age, and likewise, he commands the most attention during his ensemble scenes. Jurnee Smollett and Nate Parker, as the other two central debaters, are more than capable in flanking Whitaker -- Smollett overcoming her character's initial timidity to show the passion smoldering inside, and Parker fighting powerful demons and urges that cloud his imposing intellectual skills. In its meaty content, The Great Debaters leaves few stones unturned when it comes to the stimulating social issues of the day, be it Southern racism, the welfare debate, labor politics, or the role of women in society. The Great Debaters is constructed more or less as an underdog sports story, and in that sense it contains few surprises. It's the details of the journey, and the precision of the performances, that make this one worth watching.