Why is this movie so hated on?

Sigh...Forrest Gump is FICTION. He's not a real guy. The historical situations he gets into are supposed to be funny. However, we are led to believe that, since The Butler is based on a man who really was a butler under several presidents, it will actually be this man's story. It's not. They inserted a real person and his family into historical events - only about racism and little else - where they didn't belong. They invented lies about his wife and kids and how he even got the job in the first place! I'm all for utilizing artistic/dramatic license, but this is too much.

So did you watch the movie for entertainment or for a history lesson? If you watch any movie for a history lesson, you're wasting your time. Hollywood is mostly fiction. If you want a history lesson then I suggest you visit your local library. Also, nobody ever claimed that the movie was a true story or that it was based on a true story. The movie just claims to me "inspired" by a true story, which means that the story is mostly fictional but the idea for certain aspects of the movie came from an actual person or occurrence.

Bottom line, it's not good.

That's your opinion. I think a lot of people would disagree with you. It was one of the most talked about movies of that year and not all of the talk was negative. In fact, a lot of people actually enjoyed the movie.

Just because it's about racism it's supposed to be good? No. Just because Black people are in it, it's automatically good? No. This had the potential to be something great, but it turned out being just a worthless celebrity pet project. It's a slap in the face to the man who actually was the butler. It was dishonest and disrespectful.

I don't think that anyone is suggesting that the movie is good for the reasons that you suggest. That would be really ridiculous. Also, who exactly was the movie disrespectful towards? The movie was about one black family, who's head was a butler, who happened to work in the White house. Of course they embellished a bit about his personal life to make the film more interesting. Again, that's Hollywood. That's how the movie industry works. Would you rather spend your time and money watching a 2 hr long movie about a regular black man who faces no obstacles in his entire life or a movie about butler who loves his job and comes home to a happy and carefree house-hold, with nothing eventful nor exciting happening in a 70+ year span? I think most people would find that quite boring, which would most like effect the movie's popularity and ticket sales. Therefore having a negative effect on the cast and crew members' careers and the investor's profit. This is why a lot of the movie is fictionalized. Most of the entertainment industry, from movies to books and even music, is fictional. It's show business, not personal so how is that disrespect to anyone?

I mean, if we had a female president, would you enjoy watching a movie about a maid who ONLY saw sexism and women being abused while she worked at the White House? It's ridiculous.

It sounds like you're saying that this movie was simply about a butler who ONLY saw racism and black people being abused in The White House until Obama was elected president. (I'm assuming that that's what your analogy is suggesting). If this is true then you're conveniently overlooking the other themes that the movie dealt with, which had nothing to do with race. The movie was equally about a family and the struggles that exist within that family, who's father worked as a butler in The White House. There were issues such as a strained marriage, adultery, alcoholism, the loss of one son to the Vietnam War and the emotional disconnect and loss of another due to the conflicts and politics between father and son. However, I would find the movie unbelievable if it had centered around a black butler and his family during the Jim Crow and Civil Rights era and it didn't involved racial issues. That is what would be ridiculous.

The truth is the truth. As much as you seem to have an issue with fictionalization, I would have thought that you'd appreciate the realistic aspects of the movie. Racism is a truth that cannot be overlooked simply because you're tired of hearing about it or because some viewers find the topic unpleasant for whatever reason.

The casting was terrible and not all of the acting was good. Singers, musicians and talk show hosts are not good, quality actors. A parade of famous people does not make a movie worthwhile. It makes it a joke.

Again, that's your opinion. I for one, think that the cast did a pretty good job. Was this the best movie that I've ever seen or even my favorite movie of most recent times? No, it's not but then most movies aren't.

All typos and misspellings courtesy of a public educational system.

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