CREATED EQUAL: CLARENCE THOMAS IN HIS OWN WORDS

This is a four-star documentary because it holds your attention like a suspense film. Clarence Thomas recounts a life shaped by extreme poverty, racism, education, faith, and perseverance, while newsreels, photographs, and location filming give his reflections weight. The music is superb, and the Senate confirmation hearings provide real jeopardy.

The film also presents a strong Christian worldview. Thomas’s grandparents help ground him, Catholic schooling shapes him, and faith changes his direction after anger and Marxist ideology take hold. The material is not easy, though. Anita Hill’s obscene Senate testimony is repeated when Thomas refutes it, and the documentary includes discussions of sexual abuse, racism, police brutality, and lynchings.

If you are choosing for your family, this is a worthwhile film for older teenagers and adults who can handle those discussions; younger children should watch something else.

Clarence Thomas grows up in extreme poverty in Georgia, loses his family’s home to a fire, and lives in a Savannah shanty town. His grandparents then help raise him, expecting hard work and excellence.

Thomas finds faith, excels in education, attends Holy Cross College and Yale Law School, and eventually enters public service. His journey leads toward the Supreme Court, where his past and convictions face intense public opposition.

Four stars means this is a must-see documentary in the source review’s judgment. CREATED EQUAL is fascinating and keeps your attention from beginning to end. Its structure creates jeopardy even though the film recounts real events rather than inventing a fictional plot.

The documentary combines Thomas’s reflections with newsreels, pictures, and filming on location. Those elements give the story a sense of history and immediacy. The music is also superb, strengthening the film’s emotional and dramatic force.

The documentary presents a very strong Christian worldview centered on a man who grows up in extreme poverty, is grounded in the Catholic Church, rebels in response to racism, and is radically changed by faith. It includes many references to God, prayer, miracles, morality, and doing the right thing.

The film also shows how racism and exclusion contribute to Thomas’s anger and ideological rebellion. He becomes involved with a Black Power group and is drawn to Marxism before turning back toward faith. His grandparents’ discipline, Catholic education, contemplation, and prayer are presented as important parts of his formation.

Thomas later views the Declaration of Independence as grounded in biblical ideas about inalienable rights from God. The documentary portrays his convictions as placing individual responsibility and moral principle above political expectations.

At its center, the film affirms that faith can change a person’s entire worldview and direction. Scripture says, “Be transformed by the renewal of your mind” (Romans 12:2).

CREATED EQUAL is a gripping, beautifully scored documentary about poverty, racism, faith, education, and perseverance. Its testimony and discussions of abuse require discernment, but older teenagers and adults can find much to consider. Our answer is WORTH THE TRIP — OLDER TEENS AND ADULTS.