IMDb > The Great Debaters (2007)
The Great Debaters
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The Great Debaters (2007) More at IMDbPro »

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The Great Debaters (2007) -- The Great Debaters Trailer
The Great Debaters (2007) -- A drama based on the true story of Melvin B. Tolson, a professor at Wiley College Texas. In 1935, he inspired students to form the school's first debate team, which went on to challenge Harvard in the national championship.
The Great Debaters (2007) -- MattTrailer.com - Trailer (Flash)

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Overview

User Rating:
7.6/10   12,612 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 2% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers (WGA):
Robert Eisele (screenplay)
Robert Eisele (story) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for The Great Debaters on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
25 December 2007 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
When the nation was in need, he inspired them to give us hope.
Plot:
A drama based on the true story of Melvin B. Tolson, a professor at Wiley College Texas. In 1935, he inspired students to form the school's first debate team, which went on to challenge Harvard in the national championship. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 7 wins & 8 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(27 articles)
PGA Honors Precious.
 (From FilmExperience. 18 November 2009, 3:18 PM, PST)

‘This Is It’ First Day Box Office (Sort of) Breaks Records
 (From Screen Rant. 29 October 2009, 2:07 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
You do what you have to do, so you can do what you want to do. more (94 total)
US TV Schedule:

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Denzel Washington ... Melvin B. Tolson

Nate Parker ... Henry Lowe

Jurnee Smollett ... Samantha Booke

Denzel Whitaker ... James Farmer Jr.
Jermaine Williams ... Hamilton Burgess
Forest Whitaker ... Dr. James Farmer Sr.
Gina Ravera ... Ruth Tolson

John Heard ... Sheriff Dozier

Kimberly Elise ... Pearl Farmer

Devyn A. Tyler ... Helen Farmer (as Devyn Tyler)

Trenton McClain Boyd ... Nathaniel Farmer
Ritchie Montgomery ... Deputy

Jackson Walker ... Pig Owner

Tim Parati ... Pig Farmer

Robert X. Golphin ... Dunbar Reed
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Additional Details

MPAA:
Rated PG-13 for depiction of strong thematic material including violence and disturbing images, and for language and brief sexuality.
Runtime:
126 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
USA:PG-13 (certificate #44005) | Singapore:PG | Netherlands:12
Filming Locations:
Company:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
On December 19, 2007, Denzel Washington announced a $1 million dollar donation to Wiley College so they could re-establish their debate team. more
Goofs:
Errors in geography: Prairie View, Texas is nowhere near Waxahachie, Texas. more
Quotes:
James Farmer Jr.: In Texas they lynch Negroes. My teammates and I saw a man strung up by his neck and set on fire. We drove through a lynch mob, pressed our faces against the floorboard. I looked at my teammates. I saw the fear in their eyes and, worse, the shame. What was this Negro's crime that he should be hung without trial in a dark forest filled with fog... more
Movie Connections:
References Men in White (1934) more
Soundtrack:
How Long Before I Can Change My Clothes? more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
13 out of 20 people found the following comment useful.
You do what you have to do, so you can do what you want to do., 26 December 2007
8/10
Author: lastliberal from Florida

This wasn't about my Texas, although I am familiar with many of the topics in this film. I have been to Marshall in my travels over most of the highways in Texas, I know about Paul Quinn College and Prairie View A & M University. This wasn't even about my Daddy's Texas, as he was just a small boy at the time. It was, however, my Grandfather's Texas. he typified the characters in this film.

With Denzel Washington directing and acting, I expected an outstanding film. I was not prepared to be so emotionally taken in that I left the theater wiping tears from eyes. This was a powerful statement about the differences in American. Differences that were typified by Franklin Roosevelt's affirmative action program for whites - the New Deal; differences that would be repeated twenty years later after WWII when the whites again received affirmative action in the form of the GI Bill. Robert Eisele's story really brought home the pain and deprivation of being Black in America, and how some could overcome that deprivation with the right help, but could never overcome the pain.

Besides Washington, there were outstanding performances by Forest Whitaker, Nate Parker, Jurnee Smollett, and Denzel Whitaker, as a 14-year-old in college.

Tears in my eyes, I will long remember this film as one of the best of the year and of many years.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Great Debaters (2007)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
These are the kind of black movies... Ozyre Cekda
Great movie, but large mistake made at the end... Metfan2987
The lynch scene rujivachirapong
Who wished Samantha got with James rather than Lowe? flavamack
They Never Debated Harvard jonathanlerner111
Anyone else notice a slightly Communist/Socialist slant to the film? g_wales
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