Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

A Masterpiece!

A lot of fun.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

In 1970 Charleston, Mississippi, the white high school first allowed black students to attend but the parents kept the proms separated by race. In 1997, Morgan Freeman offered to pay for an integrated prom but was rejected. It's 2008 and hometown guy Freeman is trying again. The school is 70% black and 30% white. The school and the board accept. However, some white parents decide to keep the white prom going.It's an eye-opening slice of the world. It's not something in the headlines but it's also something very telling. It's a lot of interviews with the kids but it's not terribly dramatic. Freeman makes the case early on but mostly keeps his hands off. This is definitely one-sided but I can't expect participation from the other side. That's kinda the point. There is one parent of a white girl dating a black boy and that's a good look at the tip of the iceberg. It's a really interesting story but the failure to get the 'other side' limits its effectiveness.

This documentary clearly showed how racism is still prevalent in today's society. In a small Mississippi town, proms are still segregated despite the integrated class room. Morgan Freeman offers to pay for the prom if students choose to integrate it. When they do, all sorts of issues arise but they end up having fun at their senior prom. What parents say and do about it is astonishing and it shows that some places in America are still living in the past. Most kids were all for the integrated proms, however, some parents had strong opinions otherwise. The documentary opened my eyes about how racism and discrimination is still a prominent sociological issue we face in everyday life. It followed the lives of these average Mississippi teenagers through the course of their senior integrated prom and shed light on how these slower pace communities and certain socioeconomic factors contribute to how people think about race. I feel like the director could have included more kids' opinions as well as additional parents' to really show the vast amount of different views and beliefs on blacks. I did like how they showed where the kids lived and showed the different sides of a white vs black. However, I enjoyed the documentary and learned a lot about discrimination.

This documentary about this small town with just 415 students in high school that is 60% black and 40% white and has segregated proms every single year till 2008- one for black and one for white- hard to believe but it's true. Then, one day in 1997 an actor Morgan Freeman (a resident of Charleston since 1991) approached the school and offered to pay for the prom, provided it to be racially integrated. The school declined Freeman's offer. Then, 11 years later he goes back and offered again, and the school agreed to move forward with an integrated prom. So, the prom preparation starts. Over next four months as the seniors of Charleston High School prepare for their senior prom; the director/producer/writer of the documentary follows the group of senior students, both black and white. The students discuss segregation in Charleston and how they feel about it. The documentary also explores issues such as interracial relationships, and what the parents think about an integrated prom. The integrated prom is successful despite some parents' forbidding their children to attend it, and that a white only prom was held by some of the parents. Some of the students also said that some of their parents would threaten the black kids because they were friends with a white kid. In the end the white parents still had their lame white people only prom and the integrated prom went smoothly lots of people showed up. It seemed like more people were having fun at the integrated prom then the white prom. Some of the white students even had black students as their date like Jeremy and Brittany, happily together to this day. When someone asked Paul what happened after graduation, he said that Brittany and Jeremy still love each other and that no one is married yet. Not all of the students went to college, because most of the black were poor so they worked to get money for college. The white parents still have the white people only prom and the integrated prom is still happening. In 2010, the graduation rate was 68.8%. So it was fascinating and interesting and I would love to watch it again.

This documentary is about a small town in Mississippi that (to this day) has integrated proms--one for blacks, the other whites! Hard to believe but it's true. Actor Morgan Freeman was born and raised in that town up to the age of 6. He says he'll pay for the school prom--IF it's integrated! Naturally this drays a firestorm of controversy but mostly from the parents who don't want it. The kids do--but they're caught in the middle.Absolutely fascinating documentary. It's inconceivable to think that ANY town in this day and age would have separate proms. The documentary talks to the parents and kids. It's made pretty clear that most of the parents are against it--only a few support it. Also a group of white parents pressed charges against the town to NOT have an integrated prom. They also refused to appear on camera and talk about it. This isn't all about racism--it has some very fun moments. The kids themselves are funny, adult and articulate. The best bit is one boy who ends up with TWO dates to the prom! Also the tone of the film is not hysterical or condemning anyone. They just show you what's happening and has the citizens talk about it. Absolutely fascinating. A 10 all the way.