The first time I heard about Invictus I thought it was one of those American produced movies about Africa with no soul.
Even though the film is directed by Clint Eastwood, I thought no American could do right by representing such as landmark South African event such as the 1995 World Cup.
The first time I heard about Invictus I thought it was one of those American produced movies about Africa with no soul.
Even though the film is directed by Clint Eastwood, I thought no American could do right by representing such as landmark South African event such as the 1995 World Cup.
Yet my first impression of the two main actors, Morgan Freeman as Madiba and Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar was that they indeed resemble the people they represent.
The striking resemblance between Matt Damon and Francois Pienaar is almost uncanny with the only difference between the two being stature. Damon’s Afrikaans accent is unbelievably real, one would think the man was born in Boksburg or Ventersdorp.
Morgan Freeman’s portrayal of everyone’s favourite statesman Madiba is extraordinary, except for a few glitches with the accent. He often slips into his American accent every now and still but he keeps it real.
The class and race segregation are obvious from the beginning of the film with one scene depicting black boys playing soccer just a stone’s throw away from a plush field where white boys are playing rugby. Clint Eastwood really outdid himself with this well made film.
If you weren’t around during the 1995 Rugby World Cup this movie is a true reflection of what happened. How a whole nation came together in one match and how Mandela recognised how the love of sport can unite us all.
This was beautifully portrayed when Madiba (Freeman) notices, while watching a match between England and South Africa that black South Africans were cheering for England while white South Africans cheered for the Springboks. I do not want to give away much, go see the movie and judge for yourself.
The movie will give you goose bumps, it is so emotionally moving you’ll find yourself sitting on the edge of you seat. It almost brought tears to my eyes
