In this very thought-provoking biopic, I learned about Richard and Mildred Loving, an interracial couple in the 1957 case Loving vs. Virginia. Here’s a few things that struck me about this film:
- 1957 isn’t that long ago. It’s insane that prior to that, it was illegal to be in an interracial marriage, and that there were states that wouldn’t recognize it. This also made me think about the Supreme Court ruling that made gay marriage legal–that was not long ago either. I feel like this shows that even though we have progressed to a fairer and more accepting society, there is always more work to be done.
- The movie chronicled different periods in the Lovings’ lives. I thought that was an interesting way to go about making a movie, but it certainly made the movie more realistic and believable. We, after all, do not have all the details about their lives, every second of every day, only snippets from newspapers, second-hand sources, etc. So the best way to go about using that information (if you were a movie producer) was to just use the facts and try not to mix it up (too much) with fiction, especially in a film like this. I thought this was clever and very well done, though I feel like if you fail to pay attention at every scene in the movie, you can easily get lost.
- Even individuals can make an impact. I know this is optimistic, but two people who loved each other very very much set the precendence for all the interracial marriages after that. They really made a difference for so many people and they have a place in history for sure. It takes a lot of courage to stand up for something you believe in and it’s really scary to know that if it all doesn’t work out, then you might go to jail (as it is the Loving’s case)–but also this is the story of so many people before and after them who stood for something they believed in.
On a less profound note, of course the Lovings won!! They have the word ‘love’ in their names!