Sundance review and red carpet photos: Nate Parker takes on the weight of 'The Birth of a Nation'

Nate Parker, right, the director, star and producer of "The Birth of a Nation," is interviewed at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. In the background is cast member Armie Hammer. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Gabrielle Union, right, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses with singer Maxwell at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Armie Hammer, right, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses with his wife Elizabeth Chambers at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Nate Parker, the star, director and producer of "The Birth of a Nation," arrives at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Nate Parker, the director, star and producer of "The Birth of a Nation," takes the stage to introduce his film onstage at the premiere of the film at the Eccles Theatre during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Armie Hammer, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Aji Naomi King, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Nate Parker, left, the director, star and producer of "The Birth of a Nation," greets singer Maxwell at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Penelope Ann Miller, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Gabrielle Union, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Jackie Earle Haley, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Nate Parker, the director, star and producer of "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Aji Naomi King, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Gabrielle Union, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

Gabrielle Union, right, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses with singer Maxwell at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

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Nate Parker, right, the director, star and producer of "The Birth of a Nation," is interviewed at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. In the background is cast member Armie Hammer. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Gabrielle Union, right, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses with singer Maxwell at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Armie Hammer, right, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses with his wife Elizabeth Chambers at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Nate Parker, the star, director and producer of "The Birth of a Nation," arrives at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Nate Parker, the director, star and producer of "The Birth of a Nation," takes the stage to introduce his film onstage at the premiere of the film at the Eccles Theatre during the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Armie Hammer, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Aji Naomi King, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Nate Parker, left, the director, star and producer of "The Birth of a Nation," greets singer Maxwell at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Penelope Ann Miller, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Gabrielle Union, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Jackie Earle Haley, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Nate Parker, the director, star and producer of "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Aji Naomi King, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Gabrielle Union, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Gabrielle Union, right, a cast member in "The Birth of a Nation," poses with singer Maxwell at the premiere of the film at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 25, 2016, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

By Sean P. Means The Salt Lake Tribune

· January 27, 2016 2:36 pm

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

"The Birth of a Nation"

U.S. Dramatic Competition

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Nate Parker's epic drama "The Birth of a Nation" is, to borrow the quote usually attributed to Woodrow Wilson in describing D.W. Griffith's notoriously racist 1915 movie of the same title, is history written with lightning. Parker, who directed and wrote the screenplay, stars as Nat Turner, the slave-turned-preacher who in 1831 led a Virginia slave rebellion that killed 60 whites and scared other Southern whites out of their minds. Parker traces Turner's life from childhood, watching his father (Dwight Henry) have to run away for killing a slave hunter, to his education in the Bible by his owner's wife (Penelope Ann Miller), and to being hired out by his later owner (Armie Hammer) as a preacher to other plantations' slaves. Parker marshals a large cast (including Aunjanue Ellis, Colman Domingo, Roger Guenvuer Smith, Aja Naomi Smith, Gabrielle Union and Jackie Earle Haley) and some powerful behind-the-camera talent — notably cinematographer Elliot Davis, production designer Geoffrey Kirkland and composer Henry Jackman — to create a grand period film that looks bigger than its indie budget. Even corralling a production that's on a par with "Braveheart" or "Spartacus," Parker puts the weight on himself, and his portrayal of Turner is explosive and heartfelt.

— Sean P. Means

"The Birth of a Nation" screens again in the 2016 Sundance Film Festival: Wednesday, 3:30 p.m., Redstone Cinema 1; Thursday, 9 p.m., Tower Theatre, Salt Lake City; Friday, 8:30 p.m., The MARC, Park City; Saturday, 9 a.m., Library Center Theatre, Park City.