And yet their performance is nothing
short of moving, profound and powerful, truly special if you consider the small
matter of non-resemblance. I suppose it takes great courage and no small amount
of self-belief to play the larger-than-life Mandela and the equally complex
Winnie. In her own words, Harris, who has played Bond girl in Skyfall, admits that playing Winnie
Mandela “is the hardest thing I’ve ever done.” The two non-South Africans had
to overcome language and accent obstacles to inject realism into the film. The
audience cheered, rapturous no doubt, when Elba spoke a few words of Xhosa in a
scene where Mandela is visiting his mother. More than anything else, it is
their reassuring performance that infuses acceptability into the biopic.
Which isn’t to say that the other actors
don’t do their job. Tony Kgoroge (another incongruity), who plays Mandela’s
long time comrade Walter Sisulu, and Riad Moosa as Ahmed Kathrada, both deliver
credible performances, as do the rest of the cast completing the Rivonia
accused as well as other important figures in the struggle. For the
straightforward reason that this is a biopic about Mandela, and perhaps in an
effort to make it as intimate as possible, the focus isn’t much on Mandela’s
comrades apart from Sisulu and Kathrada. Hence I presume it would be unfair to
say the movie diminishes their very important roles in the struggle. It is
however curious that some high profile South African actors were given these
roles that were very much in the background, such as Fana Mokoena (Govan
Mbeki), Sello Maake ka-Ncube (Chief Albert Luthuli), and Jamie Bartlett, who
plays Mandela’s prison officer James Gregory.
There is another small matter - I (and I
heard loud whispers from others in the theatre too) would have preferred Elba to
be in Xhosa attire when he utters Mandela’s famous words in court, as Mandela
himself was, to display his proud Xhosa royalty. Other key events, such as
Mandela’s childhood, arrest, walk from prison upon his well-planned release, as
well as the negotiations with the de Klerk government are a tad low-key, and
some feel almost rushed, especially his childhood. It’s hard to fault this – it
is not a small feat to compress Mandela’s eventful life in a 146-minute flick.
If you are inclined to fastidious detail you should probably read (or re-read)
the book.
However, apart from these small matters
(which are forgivable, really), you will be deeply and emotionally moved by the
depiction of the collapse of family life under apartheid, such as the last hand
clasp between Mandela and Winnie in court after his sentencing; Mandela’s grief
at not being able to attend his mother’s and son’s funerals; Winnie’s
detention, leaving their two young daughters all alone, and her courage in the
face of police harassment; and their daughter Zinzi’s reading of her father’s
letter at a release-Nelson-Mandela campaign rally, among other scenes. Prepare
yourself and don’t choke on your popcorn when those lumps fill your throat and
a teary mist covers yours eyes.
It is by no means a bleak or depressing
biopic. Humor and wit, well-known attributes of Mandela, counterbalance the
emotional scenes. Mandela and his comrades celebrate in prison when they score
a “big” victory – being given long pants in place of schoolboy shorts. Mandela’s
romance with Winnie, especially his proposal, is very heartwarming. And don’t
be scandalized by the portrayal of Mandela as a womanizing and wife-neglecting
man before he meets Winnie.
This is a very honest and intimate depiction
of the Nelson Mandela, the man and the icon; his journey from being a carefree
lawyer having the time of his life in Johannesburg, to being the face of the
anti-apartheid struggle amidst his personal guilt for having “abandoned” his
family, and finally, to being released and inspiring his nation to freedom. It
is criminal, I believe, not to watch this film.
Picture credit: Hitfix Awards
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