"Selma" is a good film. It needed to be a great film.

Nonetheless, "Selma," which purports to tell the behind-the-scenes public and personal politics of the 54-mile march in the African-American Selma Voting Rights Campaign in 1965 from Selma to Alabama's capital of Montgomery, is an important film and should be seen.If only the entire film rose to the dynamic closing moments when black-and-white footage of the actual march, which led to President Lyndon Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, is shown accompanied by the inspiring song, "Glory," written and sung by John Legend and Common."Glory" and "Selma" received two Oscar nominations, for song and picture, respectively. Much has been made of the "Oscar snub" of "Selma" director Ava DuVernay ("Middle of Nowhere," 2012; "I Will Follow," 2010), who was not nominated for a director Oscar. I can see why she wasn't nominated. "Selma" wastes many moments and opportunities for greatness.The film meanders, lingers too long on certain shots, and, in the screenplay by Paul Webb, in his apparent feature screenplay writing debut, gets lost in the back story about organizers of the Selma march, alleged marital difficulties of Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife, Coretta, and alleged closed-door meeting disputes between King and President Johnson.In fairness to the screenwriter and director, King's family, which controls his estate, didn't allow the filmmakers to use the actual words of his speeches.While David Oyelowo is extraordinary as King, others in the film are equally, if not more, memorable: Carmen Ejogo as Coretta Scott King, Tom Wilkinson as President Johnson and Tim Roth as George Wallace. That their characters loom larger than King represents the film's out-of-kilter directing.Oprah Winfrey, whose Harpo Productions helped make "Selma" a reality, has a supporting role as a civil rights activist. Martin Sheen plays a judge.The film shows King, winner of the 1964 Nobel Prize for Peace, as a calculating strategist who called Selma "an ideal staging ground" for gaining coverage on "the front pages of the nation's press every morning and the TV news every night," realizing "that requires drama" to achieve.The "drama" included the "Bloody Sunday" during the first march (there were three marches) of cracked skulls (notably John Lewis, who would become a United States congressman) and broken bones on the Edmund Pettus Bridge at the batons of county officers and the tear gas of state police, with TV broadcasts of the debacle seen by an estimated 70 million Americans."Selma" is an important movie not only for the historical story it tells, but because it relates to political flashpoints that continue to this day: voting rights, wiretapping and the right to public assembly. Can you say photo ID, NSA and Ferguson?Reading about and viewing documentary films of the Selma Voting Rights Campaign reveals far more drama than the TV movie-like histrionics of "Selma.""Selma" has reopened an important conversation. As Edmund Burke said: "Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it.""Selma," MPAA Rated PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested. Some Material May Not Be Suitable For Children.) for disturbing thematic material including violence, a suggestive moment, and brief strong language; Genre: Biography, Drama, History; Run time: 2 hrs., 8 mins; Distributed by Paramount Pictures.Credit Readers Anonymous: "Selma" was filmed on location in Selma, Alabama, and Georgia.Box Office, Jan. 30: "American Sniper" continued at No. 1 for a third straight week, with $31.8 million, a record Super Bowl weekend high, and $248.9 million, six weeks, with "Paddington" way back at No. 2 with $8.5 million, $50.5 million, three weeks, and keeping new releases from the top spots, including the teen science fiction film, "Project Almanac," at No. 3, with only $8.5 million, opening, and Kevin Costner's "Black Or White," at No. 4, with $6.4 million, opening;5. "The Boy Next Door," $6 million, $24.6 million, two weeks; 6. "The Wedding Ringer," $5.7 million, $48.1 million, three weeks; 7. "The Imitation Game," $5.1 million, $67.9 million, 10 weeks; 8. "Taken 3," $3.6 million, $81.3 million, four weeks; 9. "Strange Magic," $3.4 million, $9.8 million, two weeks; 10. "The Loft," $2.8 million, opening.Unreel, Feb. 6:"Jupiter Ascending," R: Andy and Lana Wachowski direct the science fiction film about a destitute woman. Mila Kunis, Channing Tatum, Eddie Redmayne and James D'Arcy star."Seventh Son," PG-13. Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore star in the fantasy film about fighting evil spirits."The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out Of Water," PG: The little yellow guy and his friends are back, this time on dry land. Did we say there's a pirate? There's a pirate. Antonio Banderas and Seth Green co-star.Read Paul Willistein's movie reviews at the Lehigh Valley Press website, thelehighvalley-press.com; the Times News website, tnonline.com; and hear them on "Lehigh Valley Art Salon," 6-6:30 p.m. Mondays, WDIY 88.1 FM, and wdiy.org, where they're archived. Email Paul Willistein:

pwillistein@tnonline.com. You can follow Paul Willistein on Twitter and friend Paul Willistein on Facebook.Two Popcorn Boxes out of Three Popcorn Boxes