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What a haunting motion picture
The Last King of Scotland is the story of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin (Forrest Whittaker) and his person physician Dr. Nicholas Garrigan (James McAvoy). This film completely surprised me. I expected an inspiring true story type of movie and I was completely wrong. What I got instead is a dark film that challenges the audience on what to think of its characters. McAvoy actually plays the lead character in this movie (Nicholas Garrigan) and his character is a fictional one, put into the film to help move the story along. The rest of the movie is based on a true story. Garrigan is a young doctor traveling to Uganda to help the people there. When he gets there he meets Idi Amin, the president of Uganda. Amin takes a liking to him and hires him as his personal physician. Amin is charming and fun and has a great liking for Scotland, which is where Garrigan is from. Amin seems to be a good ruler at the beginning of the film, and seems to know what hes doing for his people. But as the film progresses we see Amin's true side and what power can truly do to a man. But Garrigan makes some big mistakes also, and you feel angry at him for doing so. Things begin going downhill fast, but I won't spoil it for anybody. Now that we've discussed the main story, lets move on to characters and acting.
James McAvoy is fantastic in this film. You can see that he's a foolish young man at times, and he makes stupid mistakes that anger you. And yet, you feel bad for the character and still root for him. Towards the beginning of the movie you can see trust and awe in McAvoy's eyes. And by the end of the film you can see fear and regret. McAvoy's character has an extremely large character arc and it shows well. You can really see the change in this character by the time the movie is over.
What can I say about Forrest Whittaker in this movie except that he is PHENOMENAL. He plays this role perfectly. At one time he can be charming and likeable, and at another time he can be insane and horribly frightening. Seeing the character's constant changes in mood and emotion really shows you his madness. Forrest Whittaker delivers in this role. He is fantastic. When I saw the credits and saw actual footage of the real Idi Amin I was stunned. Whittaker embodies this character and becomes him. The resemblence between Whittaker's portrayal of Amin and real footage of Amin is breathtaking. If nothing else, at least see this movie for Forrest Whittakers performance.
I did have at least one problem with this movie. The ending seemed a bit out of place. For most of the movie we have this deep, dark, character study and then for the last part of the movie it suddenly becomes a thriller? It's a bit strange and it doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the film's mood.
I highly reccomend The Last King of Scotland. It was truly haunting and the performances in the film were great. The ending is a bit out of place, but the rest of the movie is spectacular.
4.7/5
What a haunting motion picture
The Last King of Scotland is the story of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin (Forrest Whittaker) and his person physician Dr. Nicholas Garrigan (James McAvoy). This film completely surprised me. I expected an inspiring true story type of movie and I was completely wrong. What I got instead is a dark film that challenges the audience on what to think of its characters. McAvoy actually plays the lead character in this movie (Nicholas Garrigan) and his character is a fictional one, put into the film to help move the story along. The rest of the movie is based on a true story. Garrigan is a young doctor traveling to Uganda to help the people there. When he gets there he meets Idi Amin, the president of Uganda. Amin takes a liking to him and hires him as his personal physician. Amin is charming and fun and has a great liking for Scotland, which is where Garrigan is from. Amin seems to be a good ruler at the beginning of the film, and seems to know what hes doing for his people. But as the film progresses we see Amin's true side and what power can truly do to a man. But Garrigan makes some big mistakes also, and you feel angry at him for doing so. Things begin going downhill fast, but I won't spoil it for anybody. Now that we've discussed the main story, lets move on to characters and acting.
James McAvoy is fantastic in this film. You can see that he's a foolish young man at times, and he makes stupid mistakes that anger you. And yet, you feel bad for the character and still root for him. Towards the beginning of the movie you can see trust and awe in McAvoy's eyes. And by the end of the film you can see fear and regret. McAvoy's character has an extremely large character arc and it shows well. You can really see the change in this character by the time the movie is over.
What can I say about Forrest Whittaker in this movie except that he is PHENOMENAL. He plays this role perfectly. At one time he can be charming and likeable, and at another time he can be insane and horribly frightening. Seeing the character's constant changes in mood and emotion really shows you his madness. Forrest Whittaker delivers in this role. He is fantastic. When I saw the credits and saw actual footage of the real Idi Amin I was stunned. Whittaker embodies this character and becomes him. The resemblence between Whittaker's portrayal of Amin and real footage of Amin is breathtaking. If nothing else, at least see this movie for Forrest Whittakers performance.
I did have at least one problem with this movie. The ending seemed a bit out of place. For most of the movie we have this deep, dark, character study and then for the last part of the movie it suddenly becomes a thriller? It's a bit strange and it doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the film's mood.
I highly reccomend The Last King of Scotland. It was truly haunting and the performances in the film were great. The ending is a bit out of place, but the rest of the movie is spectacular.
4.7/5