Oct. 22nd, 2007
The Last King of Scotland
Oct. 22nd, 2007 11:04 amThere are movies about people who stand up against horrible regimes and violent madmen. This ain't that movie. James McAvoy plays the lead, Scottish doctor Nicholas Garrigan. Garrigan is part of an African medical mission and helps new Ugandan leader Idi Amin after he breaks his hand. He also shoots a cow. This impresses Amin (who is the RIVETING Forest Whitaker) who ends up making Garrigan his personal physician. After that it takes awhile for Garrigan to realize he's helping a brutal thug and madman...
Seriously, I think this tops Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai as Whitaker's best role. Also I was shocked to learn that Amin was alive (in exile in Saudi Arabia) for TWO and a HALF decades after he was ousted from power in '79. Why the hell would the Saudis keep this guy around for that long?
Also the score was somewhat...offsetting...a bit in the final half-hour. Much of it felt like it belonged in a shallower action picture...
Seriously, I think this tops Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai as Whitaker's best role. Also I was shocked to learn that Amin was alive (in exile in Saudi Arabia) for TWO and a HALF decades after he was ousted from power in '79. Why the hell would the Saudis keep this guy around for that long?
Also the score was somewhat...offsetting...a bit in the final half-hour. Much of it felt like it belonged in a shallower action picture...