http://rasml.org/?p=1049

Up until yesterday, I’ve thought of Whitaker as a competent character actor who plays quiet, somewhat passive men who stand in the background of a film’s action (Species and another thriller come to mind.).

He disappears into his bravura performance as Amin here, and totally dominates the film with charisma, vigor and energy.

I also admire the film for portraying the doctor as flawed and not pulling any punches in its depiction of Amin’s atrocities.

Writing this entry prompted me to look up the definition of “bravura” and learn more about director Kevin McDonald’s work.

This film follows the initially protected world of Nicholas Garrigan, a Scotsman who travels to Uganda in search of another life, where he connects with the newly elected president, Idi Amin. After being convinced to become Amin’s personal physician, Garrigan starts to realise Uganda isn’t as free under Amin’s rule as he initially thought. Stellar performance by Forest Whitaker, brilliant cinematography, great script and direction makes this highly recommendable. A very focused effort and a great film, all in all.

Besides being a great movie, this had the added bonus of trailers that were total bait-and-switch.

This had a ton of trailers that showed nothing but cheering crowds and a big jolly laughing man.

Surprise, moviegoers! Surprise!

With The Last King of Scotland, Kevin MacDonald follows on the compelling mixture of documentary with dramatic re-creations in Touching the Void with a film that exists within the margins of historical fact. By placing a Scottish doctor into Uganda who happens to become Idi Amin’s personal physician, it provides an opportunity for a character study and a reflection on moral choices that are made. With an amazing performance by Forrest Whittaker as Amin and an equally compelling one by James McAvoy, it is a fascinating look at history from a different point of view.

This movie really confused me. I was expecting some sort of historical drama like Braveheart considering that this year marks the 300th anniversary of the Act of Union that brought Scotland into the United Kingdom. With the exception of a bunch of graduating students jumping into a lake at the beginning of the movie, this film didn’t have much to do with Scotland at all.

Fascinating and entertaining movie with great performances… especially Whitaker who is absolutely sensational (by turns charming, ruthless and very scary)