Sharpton says film debuts at ‘critical point’ in U.S. politics

The Rev. Al Sharpton has been called a lot of names in his public life: a hustler, a racist, an opportunist, a fraud, a rat, a jester.

He embraces at least one of the intended insults, a name often hurled by his critics on the right and the left: “Loudmouth.” That’s also the title of a two-hour documentary about the national civil rights leader debuting at theaters in over 20 cities Friday.

Sharpton’s brash and combative styles, deployed in his advocacy for victims and families seeking accountability over police brutality and racial injustices, are on full display as filmmakers trace his evolution from Brooklyn rabble-rouser to sought-after figure in the U.S. political arena. Sharpton said he hopes the film inspires up-and-coming generations of loudmouths to join movements against injustices in their own communities.

“You had to be loud because you were not invited to address the public,” he says in the documentary framed around a