The Loving Story (2011)

A racially-charged criminal trial and a heart-rending love story converge in this documentary about Richard and Mildred Loving, set during the turbulent Civil Rights era. Long Way Home: The... See full summary »

Director:

Nancy Buirski

Writers:

Nancy Buirski, Susie Ruth Powell

Stars:

Jane Alexander, Lindsay Almond Jr., Edward L. Ayers

Cast

Credited cast:
Jane Alexander	...	Eleanor Backman - The Great White Hope (archive footage)
Lindsay Almond Jr.	...	Himself - Virginia Governor, 1958 (archive footage) (as J. Lindsay Almond Jr.)
Edward L. Ayers	...	Himself - Historian and President, University of Richmond (as Edward Ayers)
Leon M. Bazile	...	Himself - Caroline County Circuit Court (archive footage) (as Judge Leon M. Bazile)
Hugo Black	...	Himself - Associate Justice (archive footage)
William Brennan	...	Himself - Associate Justice (archive footage)
David Brinkley	...	Himself - NBC News, Washington (archive sound)
Tom Clark	...	Himself - Associate Justice (archive footage)
Bernard S. Cohen	...	Himself - ACLU Attorney (archive footage) (archive sound)
Caitlin Congdon	...	Herself
William O. Douglas	...	Himself - Associate Justice (archive footage)
Ken Edwards	...	Himself - Caroline County Deputy Sheriff (as Kenneth Edwards)
Abe Fortas	...	Himself - Associate Justice (archive footage)
Raymond Green	...	Himself - Richard's Best Friend
John M. Harlan II	...	Himself - Associate Justice (archive footage)

Storyline

A racially-charged criminal trial and a heart-rending love story converge in this documentary about Richard and Mildred Loving, set during the turbulent Civil Rights era. Long Way Home: The Loving Story is a story of love and the struggle for dignity set against a backdrop of historic anti-miscegenation sentiments in the U.S. The Lovings, an interracial couple, fell in love and married at a critical time in American history, and, because of a confluence of social and political turmoil our reluctant heroes bring about change where previously no one else could. They are paired with two young and ambitious lawyers who are driven to pave the way for Civil Rights and social justice through an historic Supreme Court ruling, changing the country's story forever.

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Plot Keywords:

interracial couple | white male black female relationship | husband wife relationship | interracial marriage | bigotry | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Drama | History | Romance

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Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 April 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

I istoria ton Loving

Filming Locations:

Bowling Green, Caroline County, Virginia, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Augusta Films, National Endowment for the Humanities, The

Technical Specs

Runtime:

77 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

"Garnet" was the first name of Mildred Loving's sister, and the last name of the Sheriff of Caroline County, who arrested Mildred and Richard Loving.

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Quotes

(uncredited man on street in archive footage): Some of my best friends are niggers, if I got in to trouble, I think th... the niggers would come to me as quick as anybody else in the world. I'll give you a little instance, I was standing down on the street with a gentleman from another city last Saturday, and I recon that fifteen or twenty negros passed, and I spoke to 'em "Good morning John, how you gettin' along?" "Very well thank you Mr. Wall, gettin' on fine." And that went on for fifteen or twenty uh negros in less than fifteen minutes...

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Connections

Edited from Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)

User Reviews

Wonderful Documentary Made Primarily from Old Archival Materials

I just saw "The Loving Story" this afternoon at the Traverse City Film Festival. The film is moving and inspirational, illustrating that sometimes even poor and minimally educated people can obtain justice within our court system. The story is straightforward and the ending is known, but the still photos and interview footage (some just recently discovered) of Richard and Mildred Loving shows a very genuine and touching relationship between them and their 3 children. Their quiet dignity in the face of racist laws and attitudes is inspirational. The ACLU once again is shown to be a force for justice to which people without money or power can turn.

We were not lucky enough to have the Loving's daughter Peggy present (as was the case for aegriffin at Tribeca) but the director and writers Nancy Buirski and Susie Ruth Powell were here for a Q&A. Their story of how this documentary came to be is entertaining and emotional. The idea that this film should have been used (as suggested by another reviewer) as an "opportunity to investigate the legal process" leaves me puzzled. Unless one is an attorney, the film presents as much about the legal process as one would reasonably want to know. It is not a legal treatise, but rather a story of a couple in love who would not back down from what is right, and an affirmation that the US legal system can (in time) bring about a just outcome on some occasions.

Everyone I saw it with gave this documentary their highest rating. You will not regret the time spent viewing this heart-warming slice of civil rights history. Kudos to Ms. Buirski & Powell.

And Ms. Buirski did mention that the documentary will be shown on HBO in February 2012. I certainly plan to watch it again at that time. 9/10