Slavery has had its moment in the spotlight over the past 12 months with the Oscar-winning 12 Years A Slave and, to some extent, The Butler.
The Butler gives us an insight into the 20th Century and black oppression through the parallels it draws between the political landscape of thetime and the life of Cecil Gaines (Forest Whitaker), the black butler to eight US presidents.
Based loosely on the life of Eugene Allen, this is a real eye-opener to the abhorrent things that went on.
Gaines began serving white people after his father was shot dead by a white landholder in the Deep South, after his mother was raped by the same man.
Learning to serve the white man while being "invisible in the room", Gaines soon becomes very good at what he does.
