Lee Daniels' The Butler

I appreciate The Butler for the editing (by Joe Clotz), the juxtaposition, and its black-centric lens.

It's a pedestrian script, with tons of exposition, tons of signalling, and jarring vernacular oddities... The Butler does not serve its own subject matter well.

While the film fictionalizes many aspects of Allen's true story (even changing his name to Cecil Gaines) for dramatic effect, it stays true its sentiment.

Brilliant. Historic. Compelling.

It's not an interpretation of actual history as much as it is a reduced revision of movie history.

It's a veritable star-spangled jamboree. And through it all, Whitaker keeps his powder admirably dry ...

Even with the film’s ambition and deeply moving moments, “The Butler” still comes across as a big Hollywood piece.

As a history, it’s lacking facts&#59; as a biography, it’s missing personality and truth.

Could have used some focus and a lot less stunt casting.

While Daniels directs individually moving scenes in The Butler, he fails as a whole to create an integral, coherent or convincing drama.