By Ben Reese
Either to honor a legend or to take a breather from their workload, students crowded into Rosenstock Auditorium on Friday, January 30 at 7 p.m. to watch the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. documentary “King: A Filmed Record.”
Many students gathered for all types of reasons. “I really wanted to know more about Martin Luther King,” one student said. Another student brought his family as a way to catch up after not seeing his family since the beginning of the semester. Other students used the showing as a social opportunity and went with a friend.
Others went so that they could take a break from reading or homework, since classes are in full gear this week. No matter the reason why students went, when the film started, everyone watched with diligence as the civil rights documentary blazed the screen.
The movie “King: A Filmed Record” came off a 40 year stretch as a “lost” film two years ago, with only a few prints left in existence after a one time showing. But in 2012, it was released on DVD and now in 2015 we find it in our auditorium. Only consisting of newsreels and other archived footage, there are some truly startling scenes.
Some scenes showed people brutally beaten and the demise of Dr. King. Other scenes inspire, like the large number of his speeches that appear in the film. Between these speeches we hear narration given by many celebrities including Marlon Brando and James Earl Jones, which offer background to the 13 year journey starting with the Montgomery bus boycott in 1955 to his assassination in 1968.
All things considered, the true story is the star of the documentary, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who fought to end injustice. And still almost half a decade later his efforts are still felt by all of us and his words will ring true forever.
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