The Butler

Right now you can watch The Butler in the US on Philo and YouTube TV, and in the UK on Amazon Prime Video — and it holds up to as much attention as you give it. The length is exactly right for the story it is telling — nothing rushed, nothing dragged out. A 7/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. Forest Whitaker leads a cast that never overplays its hand. Available now on Philo — press play and find out why people keep recommending it.

The Butler is not trying to be everything to everyone, and that focus is exactly what makes it work. The Butler takes its time building the world its characters inhabit, and the patience pays off. Cecil Gaines was a sharecropper's son who grew up in the 1920s as a domestic servant for the white family who casually destroyed his. Eventually striking out on his own, Cecil becomes a hotel valet of such efficiency and discreteness in the 1950s that he becomes a butler in the White House itself. There, Cecil would serve numerous US Presidents over the decades as a passive witness of history with the American Civil Rights Movement gaining momentum even as his family has troubles of its own. Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey lead a cast doing genuinely serious work here. It was released in 2013. The performances in The Butler do a lot of work in the silences between the dialogue. There is real craft here, even in the moments that do not fully land.

Drama fans who appreciate slow-burn storytelling will feel right at home with The Butler. It rewards viewers regardless of what else is in their watch history. A contained runtime means every scene is doing real work. Forest Whitaker carries the material with a performance that rewards close attention. Worth starting sooner rather than later.