everything you have heard about this movie is true.

A brilliant film that helped define a genre

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Is this film politically incorrect? Absolutely. Was it influential? Yes. Is it historically inaccurate? For the most part, yes. Film is considered art and art has always been considered controversial. This was the first film to gain significant controversy and it wouldn't be the last. The film saying that all blacks are murderers and rapists is no different than Donald Trump saying all illegal immigrants are murderers and rapists. This film came out in 1915, Donald Trump made that controversial statement in 2016, 101 years later. Things clearly haven't changed. You need to be aware that this film is racist or else it might be a bad influence on you. Yes, the movie does portray the KKK as heroic, it does make it seem all blacks are vicious rapists, but I don't believe in banning this movie because it would be the same as trying to pretend this kind of racism and racial prejudice never existed. It should be shown so people can learn from the past and never make those same mistakes again. As for the black face makeup, that was sadly a product of its time, most black characters in movies back then were portrayed by white actors wearing black face paint, it was racist back then and it's racist now. Even though it was politically incorrect, there was no film like this at the time in terms of production and editing. It was the first time people began to take a motion picture seriously. The movie was seen as a book in moving pictures full of drama, excitement, romance and heartbreak. It's just unfortunate one of the most influential movies in history also happens to be the most controversial. If you are aware that this film is nothing but anti-black propaganda, then this movie probably won't turn you into a racist. Almost every open minded person knows that the KKK is a horrible organization that should have never existed. But you should appreciate this movie more for its art and production rather than its message. There's been plenty of other stories with bad messages. Grand Theft Auto V is a video game about trying to become a successful criminal and that game has sold extremely well. This movie should only be seen by those mature and open minded enough to know how racist it is. It shouldn't be seen by a young mind who doesn't know right from wrong.

The title of this review says it all. The reason people call this film racist is because it has a very realistic idea of how racism was at the time of the Civil War. And Griffith wasn't racist either; he wanted only to show how white people thought of blacks at the time. So anyone who hates this film is only hating on how black people were treated at the time of the War. That's silly to hate on; that time depicted here is gone and today black people are treated equal.This film is 3 hours long, much longer than a full-length movie would be today (I was shocked when I heard this films' run time). It is all about 2 families (the Stonemans on the North side, and the Camerons on the South) experiencing the Civil War and its aftermath. The slaves, once they are freed, begin to rise up against the white men, which is when the KKK stepped in, to stop the continual rise of the freed slaves. True, they are depicted as heroes here, but again, that's how it was then: perhaps the Klan was, at the time, considered heroic. Of course, it's different today, as the Klan still exists.I thought this film captured the essence of the War well. The acting was very good, and it actually looks like it was made during the War, which was, of course, impossible. This film combines fact as well as fiction. Of course the story itself wasn't the work of Griffith or anyone else involved in this film: the story was based on a book called "The Clansman", by Thomas Dixon Jr. I have not read the book but it looks like it was well adapted. True, some of this film is slow-paced (for instance, the beginning introduces the characters and takes quite a bit of time to do so) but when the film gets exciting, it turns into a cliff-hanger at times. It is presented in 2 parts: the first part deals with the historical events of the War, and the second part is a fictional story involving the KKK and a crazy idiot named Silas Lynch. Both parts are well done, and the person who played Abraham Lincoln (Joseph Henabery) was fit for his role. The Lincoln Assassination was also well done too.Very good. Someday I should find myself a DVD of this one!

The Alpha Film edition was restored, but has no special features.The film claims the US became a disunion when black people were brought over here....ummm whose fault was that? The production follows the lives of the southern Cameron family living in Piedmont, South Carolina and the Stoneman family of Pennsylvania. Two of the men met while at a boarding school, afterwards becoming pen pals and eventually falling in love with each other's sister. When war breaks out they find themselves in battle against each other at Gettysburg. Later the Stonemans go south after the war and must join with the Klan to regain their "Aryan Birthright" against carpetbaggers, mulattoes, and Yankee blacks who dare to want equality and interracial marriage.Many of the stages were historical recreations and D.W. Griffith made sure you knew that with a sign. There was actually very little in dialogue. It would show you people talking, but you never knew what they said, rather the sign would explain the scene. The second half of the film was like watching my friend Sean Hannity, race baiting and outright lies. Only the Klan could have saved Piedmont from the incursion of the black man. Southern blacks fought with the Klan which contradicted their aims in the legislature where black law makers have their shoes off and feet on the desk, drinking from bottles. They passed laws to disenfranchise white people, make white people salute them, and legalized interracial marriage...about as factual as a Trump tweet.On the plus side Lillian Gish and Miriam Cooper were screen gems.The film is iconic including quotes from then President Wilson. Historically it re-energized the Klan membership because "truthiness" matters more than truth to some people.

Based on the 1905 novel "The Clansman" by Thomas F. Dixon, Jr., this silent film epic is as brilliantly made as it is incredibly racist. It has often been hailed as one of the most important films in cinematic history because of the techniques that its director D. W. Griffith, a master of his craft, pioneered while working on it. Many of the techniques that audiences now take for granted such as long shots, pan shots and frequent use of intercutting made their first appearance here. The battle scenes are thrilling, beautifully staged and surprisingly violent for the time. The script by Griffith and Frank E. Woods is very well structured and, while it inspired many feelings in me, boredom was not one of them. The film depicts a version of the United States, North and South, and its people, black and white, which only ever existed in the minds of bitter Southerners. Its warped, ahistorical treatment of race relations led to widespread protests by the NAACP, riots in several major cities and, according to one report, the murder of a black teenager by a white man as a direct result of the latter watching the film (though the evidence is less than conclusive). The film has also been blamed for contributing to the revival of the Ku Klux Klan, which had essentially ceased to exist in the 1870s but returned with a vengeance over the course of the next few years. The storyline follows two families, the Northern Stonemans and the Southern Camerons, who are acquainted as a result of the fact that the eldest sons attended boarding school together. The film's first half concerns the prelude to the Civil War and the war itself while the second concerns Reconstruction. Austin Stoneman, played by Ralph Lewis, is the Speaker of the House of Representatives and a thinly veiled version of the Radical Republican Congressman Thaddeus Stevens, even possessing a club foot. Like Stevens, Stoneman is not only an abolitionist but believes that blacks and whites are equal. As such, he is one of the major villains of the piece. The other major villain, his biracial protégé Silas Lynch, does not appear until the second half but he is depicted as being a truly evil, venomous character who seeks to create a Black Empire in the South with himself as its king. The only other African-American shown to have any real intelligence is Stoneman's housekeeper Lydia Brown, who is likewise biracial. Based on Stevens' housekeeper and alleged lover Lydia Hamilton Smith, she only appears briefly but she is clearly intended as a Lady Macbeth type who manipulates Stoneman into going along with her ideas of equality. Most of the other black characters are depicted as being ultra- violent, cruel, detestable and sometimes little more than animals. In one particularly disturbing scene, a black renegade named Gus - played by Walter Long in blackface - attempts to rape the fragile waif Flora Cameron, ultimately driving her to commit suicide. The implication of this scene is clear: black men will rape and kill every white Southern woman unless the KKK does something about them. It's one of the most sickening sequences in a film which has no shortage of them, particularly in its second half. The only black characters portrayed in a sympathetic light are the Camerons' "faithful souls" - perfect illustrations of the Mammy and Uncle stereotypes - and various slaves who were much happier before they were freed. The majority of the black characters are played by white actors in blackface but there are many black extras in the background. They were probably glad to get some work but I have to wonder what they thought of the film, especially Madame Sul-Te-Wan whose parents were freed slaves.Although the film is perhaps best remembered for its glorification of the KKK, they do not actually appear until 2 hours and 5 minutes into the 3 hour and 13 minute running time but they certainly make their presence felt after that. They are described as "the organisation that saved the South from the anarchy of black rule" and that really says it all when it comes to the film's attitude towards them. They are depicted performing several supposedly heroic feats such as hanging Gus, dumping his corpse on Lynch's doorstep and rescuing the bound and gagged Elsie Stoneman before she can be forced into marrying Lynch. The Klan's founder is Elsie's lover Ben Cameron, otherwise known as "the Little Colonel."One thing that surprised me was the fact that Abraham Lincoln was treated very positively with Dr. Cameron even describing him as "our best friend" when it comes to Reconstruction. There are some moments that seemed genuine such as Phil Stoneman and Margaret Cameron's shy interaction when they first meet and Elsie putting on a brave face as her three brothers leave for war before bursting into tears the moment that they leave. It's a lovely little moment which is wonderfully acted by Lillian Gish. Although most of the characters are misconceived to some degree, the film nevertheless has a very strong cast: Miriam Cooper as Margaret, Henry B. Walthall as Colonel Cameron, Mary Alden as Lydia Brown, Ralph Lewis as Stoneman, Elmer Clifton as Phil, Spottiswoode Aitken as Dr. Cameron and Josephine Crowell as Mrs. Cameron.Overall, neither the importance of the film nor its racism have been exaggerated. I think Roger Ebert said it best: "Like Riefenstahl's 'The Triumph of the Will', it is a great film that argues for evil. To understand how it does so is to learn a great deal about film, and even something about evil."I'm sort of torn about how to rate this film. In terms of quality, I'd give it 10/10. If I were to rate it in terms of morality (something that I have never done before and may never do again), I'd give it 0/10.