GENRE: True-life drama
RUNNING TIME: 146 minutes
STARRING: Idris Elba (Thor: The Dark World), Naomie Harris (Skyfall), Tony Kgoroge (Invictus), Riaad Moosa (Material)
DIRECTED BY: Justin Chadwick (The Other Boleyn Girl)
RATING: 9/10
Currently screening at Ster-Kinekor Northgate.
PLOT: The story begins at Nelson Mandela’s birthplace in Qunu, in the Eastern Cape. It depicts the initiation of young boys and one of the characters says something along the lines of, “his duty waits for him”. If you here this sentence today, it sounds prophetic. The story then jumps to 1940s Johannesburg where Mandela and Oliver Tambo are working in a law firm together. Throughout the story reference is given to political uprisings, such as the Sharpeville Massacre and the Soweto protests, and Mandela’s involvement and response to these events. Moviewatchers see how he meets and falls in love with his first wife Evelyn, and also later his second wife, Winnie. For most of the film Mandela is in prison, first on Robben Island, where he arrives in 1964, and then Pollsmoor Prison in Cape Town, and eventually Victor Verster Prison in Paarl.
THE GOOD: At certain stages you become surprised by what you already know. Viewing moments in South Africa’s history hits you harder than expected. You see a man who for his entire life wanted to do the right thing but at the same time also has his flaws. The movie does a good job of illustrating this. You are exposed to Mandela’s vulnerability and an entirely different aspect of the man is exposed.
THE BAD: Sensitive viewers might be upset by the violent depictions of very critical moments in South Africa’s history. However, these scenes serve an important purpose and the storyline cannot work without them.
VERDICT: The order in which the film plays out is very well thought-out. It must have been a difficult task to pick and choose memorable moments in the icon’s life. Most viewers will walk out of the cinema having learned something about Madiba and our country they had not known before.
*SPECIAL THANKS TO STER-KINEKOR NORTHGATE FOR MAKING THE REVIEW POSSIBLE.
