Film Reviews & Movie Analysis

‘Be Free or Die’ has become my official words to live by.

The Synopsis
Araminta Ross (Cynthia Erivo) has to run.

Her master Gideon Brodess (Joe Alwyn) is selling her South – a place where slaves are never heard from again, and conditions are worse than they are in her state of Maryland.

Leaving behind her husband, family and the relative safety she has known all her life, Araminta travels over 100 miles alone, haggard and hungry but trusting in her connection with the Lord as she dodges her former master who stays hot on her heels.

Though she makes the journey in one piece, she remains restless. In a new state she has taken a new name; Harriet Tubman, and with it a new mission. Harriet Tubman won’t sit easy until her friends, family, and all shackled to the abomination of slavery taste freedom – or die trying.

What my cinema companion said:
 *Crying*: “I’m just so happy she’s free!”

The Good
I appreciated the historical simplicity of the movie especially from an outside perspective. My knowledge of American History comes from television/movies (actually my knowledge of all history comes from television/movies) and so I liked that it was easy enough to follow. There was a clear picture of the times, a hint about the Underground Railroad, but the sole focus was on our protagonist and her story.

The audience’s reaction to the movie in the cinema really added to experience. We laughed, gasped and were angered together and I think that connection we all had to the movie showed that the writer, the director and of course the cast all knew what they wanted to achieve from each interaction, scene and piece of dialogue.

On more than one occasion there was a scene that made your heart ache, soar or roar, and getting such a reaction from any audience is a feat to be applauded.

The Bad
My only issue with this movie is that it dragged in the middle. Essentially Harriet is going back and forth between Maryland and Pennsylvania freeing slaves from her former home – that’s pretty much what she does for the bulk of the movie.

I know it’s based on a true story so don’t @ me, but in terms of keeping an audience engaged, I wish there was a little more, in way of a story arch to bolster things as a whole.

For example as soon as I met Marie Buchanon (Janelle Monáe), who becomes a friend to Harriet I wanted to know more about her too. Understandably it wasn’t her story but as I said, something to perk up the story between Harriet’s back and forth’s across state lines would have kept me a little more engaged.

The Conclusion
Admittedly I enjoyed this movie more than I thought I would. I didn’t plan on seeing it, but a friend wanted too so I went with. I didn’t know much about Harriet Tubman other than she was a part of American history in that she was a vital instrument when it came to freeing slaves before the civil war. I don’t normally veer towards biographical movies but Harriet was emotional and informative with a splash of re-imagination.