Great Debaters

Theatrical Release Date: 2007 12 25 (USA)

UPC: 796019810708

Studio: Weinstein Company

MPAA Rating: PG13   Contains:[Violence, Profanity, Sexual Situations]

Summary: 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. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Category: Drama

Awards: The Bvlgari Award for NBR Freedom of Expression – National Board of Review Best Picture - Drama – null Best Picture – African American Film Critics Best Picture - Drama – Hollywood Foreign Press Association

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

Great Debaters

Format: DVD

Release Date: 05/13/2008

Audio: DD5.1 Dolby Digital 5.1

Runtime: 124 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French

Subtitles: Spanish

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Disc #1 -- Great Debaters
1. "My Soul Is a Witness" [5:15]
2. The Harlem Renaissance [4:42]
3. The Hot Spot [5:33]
4. Melvin Tolson's Debate Team [4:51]
5. The Pig Farmer [3:56]
6. Debate Training [7:16]
7. Tolson, the Labor Organizer [5:26]
8. Farmer, Jr. Defies His Parents [5:00]
9. The First Debate [4:30]
10. The Winning Streak [2:44]
11. Dinner at Tolson's House [3:44]
12. Debating Oklahoma State University [4:37]
13. Melvin Tolson & James Farmer, Sr. [3:23]
14. Henry Lowe & Samantha Brooke [5:06]
15. Tolson's Arrest [5:59]
16. Tolson's Message [2:13]
17. Lynching [8:30]
18. The Howard Debate [2:17]
19. An Invitation to Debate Harvard [4:20]
20. Traveling to Boston [6:38]
21. Change of Debate Topic [2:57]
22. Sacrifice [4:23]
23. The Harvard Debate [8:31]
24. Victory [5:38]
25. Epilogue/End Credits [9:02]

Derek Armstrong

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 James 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. ~ Derek Armstrong, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Denzel Washington  Director 
Oprah Winfrey  Producer 
Todd Black  Producer 
James Newton Howard  Composer (Music Score) 
Joe Roth  Producer 
Bob Weinstein  Executive Producer 
Harvey Weinstein  Executive Producer 
Kate Forte  Producer 
Robert Eisele  Screenwriter 
Peter Golub  Composer (Music Score) 
David Crockett  Executive Producer 
John Newton Howard  Composer (Music Score) 
Denzel Washington  Actor 
Forest Whitaker  Actor 
Nate Parker  Actor 
Jurnee Smollett  Actor 
Denzel Whitaker  Actor 
Jermaine Williams  Actor 
Gina Ravera  Actor 
John Heard  Actor 
Kimberly Elise  Actor 
Devyn Tyler  Actor 
Trenton McClain Boyd  Actor 
Ritchie Montgomery  Actor 
Jackson Walker  Actor 
Tim Parati  Actor 
Robert X. Golphin  Actor 
Justice Leak  Actor 
Glen Powell Jr.  Actor 
Brad Watkins  Actor 
Brian Smiar  Actor 
Damien Leake  Actor 
Voltaire Rico Sterling  Actor 
Steve Rider  Actor 
Gordon Daniels  Actor 
Donny Boaz  Actor 
Sam Whisnant  Actor 
Bonnie Johnson  Actor 
Charissa Allen  Actor 
Michael Beasley  Actor 
Gary Mathis  Actor 
George Wilson  Actor 
Fahnlohnee R. Harris  Actor 
Harold Evans  Actor 
J.D. Evermore  Actor 
Sharon Jones  Actor 
Kelvin Payton  Actor 
Southey Blanton  Actor 
Michael Mattison  Actor 
Jeff Braun  Actor 
Milton R. Gipson  Actor 
Frank Ridley  Actor 
Jeremiah Kissel  Actor 
Jack Radosta  Actor 
Marcus Brown  Actor 
Alvin Youngblood Hart  Actor 
Dominique Flemons  Actor 
Justin Robinson  Actor 
Rhiannon Giddens  Actor 
Ahmad Powell  Actor 
Gregory Nicotero  Actor 
Gino Crognale  Actor 
Michael Deak  Actor 
Alex Diaz  Actor 

Country: USA