This well-produced film from HBO offers a good recreation of the contentious and sensational congressional confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas in 1991. The acting was superb with the performances of Wendell Pierce as Thomas and Kerry Washington as Anita Hill. Still, the film dragged at the end and did not fully convey the emotional impact of the tense hearings.
The strength of the film was that it sought to adopt a balanced and fair-minded approach to the portrayal of Thomas and Hill. With the hindsight of fifteen years, the HBO production had the opportunity to examine the case impartially. In this regard, the film was successful in not "taking sides." For the viewer who may not have lived through the televised hearings, the film allows everyone to come to terms with the controversy of who was telling the truth in the serious allegations of sexual harassment. With little doubt, it is clear that Thomas perjured himself in denying all of Hill's allegations and cleverly moving on the offense to accuse the Senate judiciary committee members of "a high-tech lynching."
In the end, politics prevailed over ethics, Thomas was confirmed, and is still sitting on the Supreme Court bench in 2017. Hill concluded that she never received a fair hearing from the politically-driven committee presided over by Joe Biden. The film points to this case as a watershed moment when Anita Hill's voice empowered women to come out of the shadows in matters of sexual harassment. There followed greater freedom and opportunities for women in the workplace and even in Congress.
Overall, the film was successful in walking a historical tightrope and allowing viewers to make up their own minds about essential themes of culture, race, and politics.
The strength of the film was that it sought to adopt a balanced and fair-minded approach to the portrayal of Thomas and Hill. With the hindsight of fifteen years, the HBO production had the opportunity to examine the case impartially. In this regard, the film was successful in not "taking sides." For the viewer who may not have lived through the televised hearings, the film allows everyone to come to terms with the controversy of who was telling the truth in the serious allegations of sexual harassment. With little doubt, it is clear that Thomas perjured himself in denying all of Hill's allegations and cleverly moving on the offense to accuse the Senate judiciary committee members of "a high-tech lynching."
In the end, politics prevailed over ethics, Thomas was confirmed, and is still sitting on the Supreme Court bench in 2017. Hill concluded that she never received a fair hearing from the politically-driven committee presided over by Joe Biden. The film points to this case as a watershed moment when Anita Hill's voice empowered women to come out of the shadows in matters of sexual harassment. There followed greater freedom and opportunities for women in the workplace and even in Congress.
Overall, the film was successful in walking a historical tightrope and allowing viewers to make up their own minds about essential themes of culture, race, and politics.