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. As his wife, Gloria, struggles with alcoholism and his defiant eldest son, Louis, strives for a just world, Cecil must decide whether he should take action in his own way.

Forest Whitaker
as Cecil Gaines

Oprah Winfrey
as Gloria Gaines

David Oyelowo
as Louis Gaines

John Cusack
as Richard Nixon

Jane Fonda
as Nancy Reagan

Cuba Gooding Jr.
as Carter Wilson

Mariah Carey
as Hattie Pearl

Terrence Howard
as Howard

Lenny Kravitz
as James Holloway

Aml Ameen
as Cecil Gaines (15)
CinemaSerf
We begin with some brutality at the hands of a character (Alex Pettyfer) who believes that the negroes on their cotton plantation are, quite literally, worthless. He rapes a woman then murders her husband when he raises a very mild objection! His mother (Vanessa Redgrave) takes a liking to their now...
v4lapq4m
I was in a mood for a Robin Williams movie. I hadn't heard of this one and it was streaming free. While Williams had only a small role as Eisenhower this movie was amazimg: thought provoking and tear jerking. Probably not the best for a 5:30 a.m. Saturday, bu this is going on my DVD to purchase lis...