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| Source: Imdb |
This drama based on historical events surrounding the foundation of
Botswana was a lot more engaging than I
thought. David Oyelowo gave a riveting and charismatic performance as righteous
leader of his people. It was a joy to watch him at work, fearless and
passionate. Definitely the stand-out
performance in this film. Though I’m not a fan of Rosamund Pike, she did do a
good job here, providing a strong partner to Oyelowo. Also worth a mention is
Tom Felton, who has grown up quite a bit since Harry Potter and has definitely
settled down a little as an actor, becoming more subtle and grounded in his art. I
liked watching his work here a lot better than previous projects of his.
I am unable
to say to what extent the script took liberties with the depiction of the
events, but it is safe to say that it made what could have been a deathly
boring political film into an interesting watch. The pacing was
just about right, feeding the characters challenges that stayed on the workeable
side of frustrating. The only thing that I had a hard time believing is that
back in the 1940ies people in UK would have been this tolerant and even
supportive of Khama and his cause. Even now, there is wide-spread racism – but that
actually makes the film’s message all the more satisfying: There are good
people to be found anywhere, and they will support each other in standing up
for what’s right.
All in all,
a better film than I expected. 3/5
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