A review by Arcanix
I was 13 when the Springboks defied form and reason to sensationally win the Rugby World Cup in 1995. As a South African with affection and reverence for his homeland, as well as an unashamed partisan supporter of the hallowed Green and Gold, it is treacherous and somewhat awkward to assess the merits of Clint Eastwood’s attempt at adapting this modern day fairytale to the screen. It is impossible to share my thoughts without the spectre of subjectivity, for better or worse. Foremost I am gladdened. This film has been developed with the substantial talents of such celebrated film-makers as Eastwood, Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon. It is a sign that Hollywood is beginning to take seriously the wealth of affecting stories and characters that embody the rich and often tragic history of the venerable Republic, and, indeed, Africa entire.
There are problems with the film. It has the scaffolding of an off-the-shelf underdog feel-good sports flick though little time is spent developing the individual members of the protagonist Springboks. Sole black player, Chester Williams, is the only character afforded rudimentary fleshing out. This detracts from the tension of the titanic and viscerally filmed rugby matches. The footage and editing is impressive enough but ultimately we are subjected to faceless, mountainous men smashing, pushing and pummelling each other. Still, we root for the Springboks because it is every much Nelson Mandela’s victory as Francois Pienaar’s or South African rugby. This is, firstly, a movie about Mandela.
Surely there is no-one on this earth better suited to play the great man than Freeman. His screen presence is one that immediately demands veneration. He injects a subtle wisdom and unmistakable charm befitting a seasoned statesman and stalwart patriot. Opposite the excellent Freeman is Damon who successfully portrays the indomitable Pienaar, an Afrikaner on an unwitting collision course with more than just sporting destiny. I also appreciated the story arc of Mandela’s security team. (I did not enjoy the contrived tension involving a certain aircraft at the beginning of the climatic final) As a South African I could gripe about the shaky accents but I choose not to. The Afrikaner and Xhosa phonetic enunciation is quite difficult for most westerners to come to terms with and the effort should be acknowledged in my opinion.
The people of South Africa, both black and white, may owe their very lives to the foresight of President Nelson Mandela. This film succeeds as a microcosm of an amazing act of diplomacy and humanity. Thanks to Mandela, South Africa has the best chance yet of realizing the dream of a ‘successful’ democratic African state. I hope this is the first of several high quality films investigating the fascinating life and times of Madiba.