Cecil gaines is working as a slave in a cotton field as a young colored boy along with his mother and father. The film tells the story of cecil gaines whitakers 34year career working as head butler at the white house. The movie is based off a man named cecil gaines who operated from place to place as a butler to support his family, while his oldest son is out protesting for his rights, beliefs, and his culture. Wil haygood adds eugene allens chronicle to his impressive list of essential works on great figures in black. Deeps contemporary film and the black atlantic familial and community relationships straddling divides. This does sound as though it would be a better miniseries than a film the. Eugene allen july 14, 1919 march 31, 2010 was an american waiter and butler who worked for the us government at the white house for 34 years until he. Cecil gaines is a butler that works in the white house, he has two sons and a wife and works hard to provide them with what he never had. Hes soon offered a job as white house butler and is ecstatic at his good fortune.
Throughout his tenure at the white house, allen quietly witnessed presidents make a series of monumental decisions impacting his civil rights as. Lee daniels in the butler 20 oprah winfrey in the butler 20 lee. Starring forest whitaker as longserving white house butler cecil gaines. Lee daniels the butler trailer lee daniels directs forest whitaker and oprah winfrey who portray husband and wife cecil and gloria gaines.
Cecil gaines, who was raised in 1920s georgia on a cotton field, worked his way up from the dirt to working in the white house for eight different presidents. The complete butler books catalog, including local history, cooking, nature, art, business, politics, selfhelp, memoir, biography, sports, fiction, and childrens books. The story is told in a chronological order, so that the viewer gets to see the world changing, particularly for african americans through the eyes of this butler. Daniels film replaces the real eugene allen with the fictional cecil gaines, using the unique perspective of a white house butler as a jumpingoff point to explore questions of race in the. He worked for eight of the most powerful people in the world. The butler, cecil gaines, is a fictional creation, an africanamerican forrest gump who bears special witness to the civilrights movement while serving on the white house staff under seven. Cecil witnesses eisenhowers reluctance to use troops to enforce school desegregation, then his resolve to uphold the law by racially integrating little rock central high school in arkansas. Meet the real cecil gaines and gloria gaines, known in reallife as eugene allen. Garcia apush 21 may 2018 the butler the butler directed by lee daniels is a raw elucidation of the implications of racially fueled violence and oppression on an individuals human condition as they attempt to navigate their social contemporary. His mother is raped by the white plantation owner and the father is shot dead immediately following. The character of cecil gaines is loosely based off of eugene allen. In lee daniels the butler, cecil gaines and his son want the same thing. Witness to history beyond the intimate moments that he shared with various presidents, eugene allen witnessed a long list of important moments during his time at the white house.
The butler is a bit more than 2 hours long, spans several decades, and includes multiple storylines. Lee daniels the butler is the story of an african american man who becomes the white house butler during the eisenhower years and serves through the reagan administration. Butler books is a louisville, kentuckybased full service publisher of trade nonfiction, fiction and illustrated books. Cecil orders louis and his girlfriend to leave his house. Cecil gaines, now 8, sits in the field with his dad, earl. Novel comparison the help and the butler freebooksummary. As cecil gaines serves eight presidents during his tenure as a butler at the white house, the civil rights movement, vietnam, and other major events affect this mans life, family, and american society. How lee daniels the butler forces americans to confront civil rights. Lee daniels the butler tells the story of cecil gaines, the african american. The presidents, as seen through the eyes of the butler. The movie begins with cecil gaines working on a plantation in 1926 with his father and mother. As cecil gaines, the lead in lee daniels the butler, he plays a white house butler who serves seven presidents over four decades, from eisenhower to. The audience is treated to the tale of an almost forrest gumplike life in which cecil gaines forest whitaker, the butler, gets a front row seat. Inspired by the true story of eugene allen, one of the first black men to serve in the white house, lee daniels the butler details the life of cecil gaines, who served as a butler for eight.
This movie the butler is based on a true story as an american historic fiction film. Lee danielss the butler is a filmashistorytextbook. Author wil haygood brings to light the truelife story of eugene allen, an african american man who served as a butler in the white house for 35 years, serving. Unpacking the fatherson relationships in the butler and lincoln i dont think that god meant for people to not have a family. The movie was inspired by the life of eugene allen, who did in fact serve in the white house between 1952 and 1986 under eight presidents from harry truman to. The film follows the character of cecil gaines, a black butler at the white house as he interacts with seven. The butler serves up a deeply affecting but sometimes farcical biopic. The film focuses on what he witnesses throughout the civil rights movement, and how is son louis.
The butler distorts race relations hoover institution. How lee daniels the butler forces americans to confront. See our topranked characters and read their profiles. The movie, which is called lee daniels the butler in the us after a naming dispute, also turns its lens on the small world of the family, using the relationships between cecil gaines. Cecil is then trained to be a houseman, eventually running away and learning how to become a butler.
The main narrative begins in 1957 with cecil gaines happily married with two kids and working at a fancy hotel. He is old and pensive, thinking back on his soon to be. The butler book by wil haygood, lee daniels official publisher. A series of shots of the white house staff packing. The film is an important reminder that there are many different ways to play a significant part in achieving that dream. Loosely based on the real life of eugene allen who worked in the white house for decades, the film stars forest whitaker as cecil gaines, an africanamerican who is a witness of notable political and social events of the 20th century during his 34year tenure serving as a white house butler. Lee daniels the butler 20 and steven spielbergs lincoln 2012 might appear to tackle vastly different themes on the.
In telling a simple story of an american family, it becomes more powerful than any screed could have been. Author wil haygood brings to light the truelife story of eugene allen, an africanamerican man who served as a butler in the white house for 35 years, serving. The butler tells the story of a white house butler who served eight american presidents over three decades. Lee daniels directs forest whitaker and oprah winfrey who portray husband and wife cecil and gloria gaines. For three decades, cecil gaines academy award winner forest whitaker served as the chief butler for eight consecutive us presidents, including dwight d. The butler is a 20 american historical drama film directed and coproduced by lee daniels and with a screenplay by danny strong. The butler, with its forrest gumplike ambition to touch on every significant moment and movement in the countrys 20th century racial history, begins by showing cecil gaines. Lee daniels the butler, opening in theaters friday, chronicles the story of eugene allen, who served under eight presidents and rose from pantry man to maitre d, making him the ultimate silent. Throughout his life at the cotton fields he witnesses the death of his father and the beating of his mother. The butler full title lee daniels the butler is a 20 american historical drama film directed and coproduced by lee daniels and with a screenplay by danny strong. Lee daniels the butler follows cecil gaines, a white house butler, during seven united states presidents. Cecil gaines is a witness to important historical events but a participant in none of them, and at times even daniels seems to wish he were making a film entirely about the freedom riders or. The fictionalised story of presidential butler eugene allen is an earnest.
Cecil gets offered a butler job at a high end restaurant in washington dc. Cecil gaines, who has been serving presidents in the white house since the late 1950s, was fired by donald trump yesterday for disobedience. The butler fictionalises eugene allen as cecil gaines forest whitaker. Allens life was the inspiration for the 20 film the butler. A scene from the butler depicting cecil gaines, the fictionalized version of eugene allen, and his response to the assassination of john f. During his life in the movie, you see everything he went through was difficult just to make a living for him and family. The butler offers contemporary look at civil rights. It is inspired by wil haygoods washington post article a butler well served by this election. Cecil gaines from lee daniels the butler charactour. We see him proudly relaying a presidential order to close the wage gap for the white houses. As it has already been said, the film is fraught with historical inaccuracies. Butler books professional book publishing in louisville.
Lee daniels the butler tells the story of cecil gaines, the african american son of a sharecropper who eventually serves as a white house butler to eight different presidents. Cecil gaines was a sharecroppers son who grew up in the 1920s as a domestic servant for the white family who casually destroyed his. We are introduced to cecil gaines forest whitaker as he sits outside the door of what appears to be a very elaborate and fancy office. As cecil gaines serves eight presidents during his tenure as a butler at the white. Forest whitaker delivers a commanding performance as cecil gaines the fictional character loosely based on the life of eugene allen, who grew up on a plantation and. The butler by wil haygood this mesmerizing companion book to the awardwinning film. It is inspired by wil haygoods washington post article a butler well served by this election loosely based on the real life of eugene allen, who worked in the white house for decades, the film stars forest whitaker as cecil. The butler was inspired by the real story of eugene allen, a man who served in the white house even longer than the fictional cecil gaines.
Of course, most of the butler the director lee danielss story of the white house servicestaff member cecil gaines liberally reimagined from the life story of ernest allentakes. Beginning his tenure under president eisenhower robin williams, cecil would see another seven presidents come and go throughout his career and was present at. The movie is based on reallife white house butler eugene allen, who worked in the white house under eight presidents, coming of age during segregation and living to see a black man be elected to the white. The film traces the dramatic changes that swept american society during this time, from the civil rights movement to vietnam and beyond, and how those changes affected this mans life and family. Forest whitaker stars as the butler with robin williams as dwight eisenhower, john. The butler tells the story of cecil gaines forest whitaker, the last king of scotland as he completes the odyssey from the sharecropping fields of georgia to the domestic quarters of the white house, where he serves as head butler under seven american presidents from eisenhower to reagan. Eugene allen july 14, 1919 march 31, 2010 was an american waiter and butler who worked for the us government at the white house for 34 years until he retired as the head butler in 1986.
The central character, cecil gaines, is only loosely based on the real allen. Loosely based on the real life of eugene allen, who worked in the white. In the butler, forest whitaker plays cecil gaines, who proudly serves tea at the white house to seven u. Take charactours quiz to get recommendations for thousands of characters, movies, tv shows, books, and games that are high matches for your unique personality. Cecil gaines forest whitaker grew up on a cotton farm in 1920s georgia. The butler has the same concept but starts off in 2009 where the narrator cecil gaines is re telling his story. In the movie, forest whitaker plays the fictional butler cecil gaines, who worked for seven presidential administrations from eisenhower to reagan. The first one is the fictional character of the white house butler cecil gaines. After cecil sees his father get shot and killed by the farms owner, he is. Danny strongs screenplay was inspired by the 2008 washington post article. Gaines had a front row view to key moments in americas history. On imdb tv, you can catch hollywood hits and popular tv series at no cost.
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