| Loath as I am to admit this, I was massively underwhelmed by Amistad. Maybe it was the fallout from seeing Titanic first, maybe it was my jaded sigh of resignation upon seeing the Dreamworks logo and the woefully overrated Matthew McConaughey. Most of the clever points I have to make in this review I have to attribute to my moviegoing companion, because he was better able to put his finger on what was wrong with Amistad. |
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| The story, while an interesting one and a historical one, was not humanized as it should have been for maximum audience empathy; nor was it, historically speaking, a very glamorous means to an end. |
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The stealth boat is ridiculous. The idea that Jonathan Pryce (oh, he was soo wonderful once) can get on international TV and announce to the world his intention of taking over everything and not get called on it...the idea that he can make up headlines before the events occur and NO ONE NOTICES is ludicrous. A helicopter chasing people through crowded streets trying to chop them up with the blades is....not all that suspenseful. |
| A group of slaves, kidnapped from Sierra Leone, rise against their captors but then are captured as "salvage" by the US. A dry property dispute ensues, tempered little by the human side of the issue. The movie has fine moments, however. Djimon Hounsou, who plays Cinque, the leader of the group of Africans, is evocative and powerful on screen. His recounting of how he got to the US is horrific and stirring. |
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Anthony Hopkins, as John Quincy Adams, orates a long and moving speech which hints at the human side of the drama, but mostly appeals to legal technicalities. The story of the revolt on board La Amistad is an interesting one, but the sad thing is, the whole legal leg it stands on is a boring one. Defining the men's status as property, and whose property, is a sad way for one to win one's freedom, even though the freedom is the point. |
| This year for Spielberg was a faint echo of 1993; whiz bang dinosaur movie followed by Very Important Film. Unfortunately, this duo was not as magic as the first. I was surprised to note that 30 minutes of film passed by with not a word of English - and not all was subtitled. Morgan Freeman has a role ripe for a little dramatic license - a freedman involved in the case of the Africans' plight. |
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| It would have been interesting to explore Cinque's feelings and Freeman's feelings related to the issues of black men as property and strength and courage and whatnot, but instead the courtroom drama prattles on about treaty jurisdiction and receipts and manifests. |
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Amistad is worth seeing for the performances and to get to know the story if you aren't familiar with it. It's chock full of stars and Very Important Music (courtesy of John Williams, who just might not get to finish that Academy Award chess set this year) and I wasn't as hugely annoyed with McConaughey as I usually am. I don't think Spielberg is going to get as much guff about being a white man telling a black man's tale as he received for The Color Purple, nor can I fault him for the Christian virtues as alien concepts thread running through the story. |
| I think the whole historical untouchability of a Very Important Film and the incredibly dry nature of the actual facts was what made this production a lose-lose proposition for Spielberg. He can't add to history without being faulted, even if it makes the film more real for the viewer, and he can't push the slant of the story too far out of what would be acceptable for him to narrate. What am I saying? I think it should be seen (before you see Titanic) but don't pay too much. |
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