Last night I went to see The Best of Enemies and, while there are flaws, I think it has a great message about listening to someone who has a different opinion to find common ground and this is definitely a message that is really needed right now! This movie tells the true story of an unlikely friendship that develops when a "charrette," or an intensive community council where all parties involved come together to propose solutions and vote on a binding course of action, is held on school integration in the racially segregated city of Durham, North Carolina in 1971. Ann Atwater (Taraji P. Henson), a civil rights activist, and C.P. Ellis (Sam Rockwell), the leader of the local Ku Klux Klan, are chosen as co-chairs of the council. At first their interactions with each other are incredibly acrimonious but as they are forced to spend time together (they literally have to sit together at the same table during lunch) they begin to see each other as people rather than enemies. They are finally able to find some common ground and there is a stand-up-and-cheer moment at the end of the movie that, well, made everyone in my screening cheer out loud. The biggest criticism that I have read about this movie is that it focuses too much on Ellis' journey of redemption and, while I would have liked more insight into Atwater's character, I think that Ellis needed to make the bigger transformation. Both Henson and Rockwell give fantastic performances and they both have several incredibly poignant scenes. I really enjoyed this movie, despite what the critics say, and I recommend it to everyone.
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