Solidly made and performed, Son of the South delivers its point that the fight against racism is one that should be fought across all barriers and by all people, as exemplified in the story of Bob Zellner.

It is a shame that the dream once held by Martin Luther King, that people should be judged by the content of their character and not the colour of their skin, has been replaced by the nightmare that is identity politics. The tribalism of today that tears us apart is akin to the segregation of yesterday. Only fear and mistrust wins when we allow our differences to determine our humanity.

Forgive the preaching, but these are the kind of thoughts and feelings that Son of the South inspires. Executive produced by Spike Lee (BlacKkKlansman) and directed by Barry Alexander Brown (Sidewalk), the film tells the story of civil rights activist Bob Zellner (Lucas Till), a white man from Alabama whose grandfather (Brian Dennehy) was a high-ranking member of the Klu Klux Klan. Zellner’s father (Byron Herlong) was also a part of the KKK, until an experience with a black choir group while he was studying in Russia (of all places) led to a change of heart and mind.

It was a life lesson that clearly rubbed off on young Zellner, who after attending a black church for a university project was almost expelled from school and kicked out of Alabama. Zellner would go on to join the Freedom Riders – a civil rights group who travelled throughout the segregated South in an effort that chance stubborn minds on the issue of race – while also becoming the first white field secretary of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee.

Zellner is portrayed by Lucas Till, who in many ways exemplifies what a “white southern boy” is perceived: blonde, handsome, tall. Yet again we are reminded not to judge the external and the artificial, but the character of a man who walked away from his comfortable life and joined a worthy cause regardless of the risks involved, which most certainly involved death as shown in the films opening scene when Zellner almost lynched for his part in the infamous

Till delivers his best performance to date, portraying that intelligence, conviction, and stubborn bravery that Zeller had in droves.

Son of the South by no means reshapes the mould of the 1960s set civil rights era movie, but it does remind of the stories of inspiration and conviction and, above all, God-centred compassion that is needed now more than ever to tackle an issue still relevant today.