one of my absolute favorites!

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

European imperialists absolutely hate looking at themselves in the mirror. This movie forces them to do so in a unique way, which causes all the meta-analytical comments herein and all the vituperative reviews. Granted Martin Luther King Jr.'s methods were not what my family and I prefer, as we'd never allow people to hurt/manipulate us without fighting back. But MLK encouraged people to let the white imperialists act like animals towards them, then force them to watch themselves act like violent savages towards peaceful people on TV news broadcasts later in the day. It worked for the intended purposes (Civil Rights Act), but that law is still largely ceremonial.The imperialists in "White Man's Burden" are perfectly aloof, disconnected and violent (police) just like the white Americans and government they are meant to portray. John Travolta and his family fill the media-reinforced stereotypical role of ignorant, poor people that must beg the imperialists for jobs, survive police savagery and live in a world where you are set up to fail and struggle just to survive. The most powerful scene IMO is when Don (Travolta's kid) is flipping through TV channels and he sees nothing but black people on every channel. The only white person who appeared while Don was channel surfacing was on a news station: a criminal wanted in connection with some type of crime. Don also preferred to buy a black toy action figure vs. a white one; the same self-hatred that is conditioned in real-life black people via media and public education.Its hard for white people to watch this movie objectively because they see their hero police as what they really are: gestapo thugs with badges that harass/assault people for no reason at all; and kill people simply because they like it. They are also forced to see the powerful conditioning imperial governments and societies force onto the oppressed class. Harry Belafonte was perfect for this role because he has lived a privileged existence for his entire life, but at the same time is a true activist who fights for the oppressed.This movie should be required viewing in all U.S. public junior highs. Hats off. Great film.

White Man's Burden is the type of film that if written by some stellar world Author and directed by the Hollywood Artistic elite and housed some of the world's finest actors it might have been an Academy Award darling. I don't mean to downplay any of the fine cast or director/writer Desmond Nakano who doesn't really have a lot of experience but I think really did try his best with this low budget production. He has a message that he's really trying to convey with this film and it's undoubtedly a powerful and important message but the question is...what is it? The message on the surface you'd think is that what it would be like for the white race if they were in the position that the black race is in and has been for years? But I honestly don't think that is the message because the film doesn't tip toe around anything. In fact if that is the message and I were a person of African American descent I'd be a little offended because most of the white people (99%) are portrayed in Ghetto's, committing crimes, being beaten, a lower class, sub-intelligent, well meaning group of people but clearly nowhere near the standard of the elite race (in this cast the black race.) I think his message is something different entirely but it's hidden amidst a bit of a muddled story and an unclear premise.John Travolta is a terrific screen presence. He has had his ups and downs but I think he's a terrific actor and really captures a character and has a great time and the best part is I always find him very down to earth, he's a regular joe and I'd love to meet him some day. His performance, I think, is very good and one of the more powerful in the film as down on his luck white guy Louis Pinnock. Pinnock cares about his family and he's just tired of the way the world is working because he's been busting his butt for years to get on the good side of things. Some suggest that his performs seems to show Pinnock has a lack of intelligence and I don't disagree but I think that might be where the character is supposed to go. I think he lacks book smarts, and maybe he's a little slower hence why he goes to these rash ends to help his family. He's a man at his breaking point and I think he is terrific in the role. Harry Belafonte is terrific as rough around the edges but part of the wealthy elite Thaddeus Thomas. Travolta and Belafonte have good chemistry which is vital for this film. It's not perfect and I think their chemistry and relationship could have been better portrayed but it's done decently. I would have loved to have seen a black actor with a little more experience and talent perform the role (Morgan Freeman perhaps?) The supporting cast are decent enough including Kelly Lynch as Pinnock's wife and Margaret Avery as Thomas' wife. Also in a really good performance is the young Andrew Lawrence (of the Lawrence brothers) as Pinnock's son who really does a terrific job in the birthday shopping scene.There are some truly powerful scenes in the film including the above shopping scene where young Donnie Pinnock chooses a popular 'Black' Super Hero toy over a less expensive white one. The world they live in is not entirely different from our own with the exception that it would seem as though the white race is a lesser class. I read one review that suggested Nakano's message was that things wouldn't be different for any other race had they had the same situation that black people have had. That message seems to ring true throughout the film. It still is a message about acceptance and understanding a man fighting for what he believes in the only way he knows how. It's an interesting film but just doesn't have the power and the backing that it could have or should have had. Still it's a very interesting watch especially for Travolta fans because I think his performance was very good. The film is an interesting and very different story which is always a good thing. 7.5/10

What I really found impressive in this film is the way it just falls into the turnaround of stereotypes. I was zapping one night and came across it and I was totally engrossed within the first few minutes. I don't come from or live in the USA but I can't help wondering what the people there thought about this film. It seemed to very subtly explain what I have always believed, racism has nothing to do with colour it has to do with wealth. I never realized that John Travolta was such a superb actor until I watched this film. I saw it about 7 years ago and I tell everyone about it when talking about cinema. What surprises me is that relatively few people have seen it or even heard of it.

Nakano's film delivers little subtlety, and even less originality than many seem to give it credit for. The one-note premise never develops into anything other than that and leaves the actors floundering in a movie that would have made a competent short, but not a feature. The performances are all passable, but the story loses credibility and goes nowhere, taking a long time to get there. Despite the writer's best efforts some of the scenes seem to reinforce rather than break down some racial stereotypes, and it's really not that shocking to see Travolta as a down-trodden white guy because they actually do exist - as do rich black guys (ask Harry Belafonte if you don't believe me!).