Lee Daniels’ The Butler (2013) – Encore Review

“Everything you are and everything you have, is because of that butler.” – Gloria Gaines

Number of Times Seen – Twice (22 Dec 2013 and 27 Jun 2024)

Link to original review – Here

Brief Synopsis – A butler working at the White House gets a first hand look at key events in history.

My Take on it – Pretty disappointing film that has so much more potential. The ‘Forrest Gumpy’ aspect of the film is great and we get to see key events in history from the perspective of someone on the fringe of these events, but the overall story is hurt by the choppiness of it all. The story doesn’t spend enough time at each of the destination stops along the way and this detracts from making this so much more powerful. The best thing about this movie is the cast and they make some very interesting choices for the actors playing the various Presidents; Robin Williams, John Cusack, Alan Rickman, James Marsden and Liev Schrieber. It;s a real shame that this wasn’t a longer film that might have spent more time at each interval and that would have made things much more poignant.

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Lee Daniels admitted that he tried to convince as many stars as he could to appear in the film, even for bit parts, to improve marketability. (From IMDB)

Rating – BAFTA Worthy (6/10) (downgrade from original review)