The Last King of Scotland (2006)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Kevin Macdonald

Writers:

Peter Morgan (screenplay) and
Jeremy Brock (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

12 January 2007 (UK)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Charming. Magnetic. Murderous.

Plot:

Based on the events of the brutal Ugandan dictator Idi Amin's regime as seen by his personal physician during the 1970s

Plot Keywords:

1970s | Uganda | Doctor | Scottish | Assassination

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 34 wins & 21 nominations

Cast

Forest Whitaker	...	Idi Amin
James McAvoy	...	Dr. Nicholas Garrigan
Kerry Washington	...	Kay Amin
Gillian Anderson	...	Sarah Merrit
Simon McBurney	...	Stone
David Oyelowo	...	Dr. Junju
Stephen Rwangyezi	...	Jonah Wasswa
Abby Mukiibi Nkaaga	...	Masanga (as Abby Mukiibi)
Adam Kotz	...	Dr. Merrit
Sam Okelo	...	Bonny
Sarah Nagayi	...	Tolu
Chris Wilson	...	Perkins
Dr. Dick Stockley	...	Times Journalist
Barbara Rafferty	...	Mrs. Garrigan
David Ashton	...	Dr. Garrigan (senior)

MPAA:

Rated R for some strong violence and gruesome images, sexual content and language.

Runtime:

121 min | USA:123 min | Canada:121 min (Toronto International Film Festival)

Country:

UK

Language:

English | French | German | Swahili

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R | Singapore:M18 | Ireland:15A | Finland:K-15 | UK:15 | South Africa:16 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Canada:18A (British Columbia) | Australia:MA | France:-12 | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:16 | Netherlands:16 | Germany:16 | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:18 | Malaysia:18PL (DVD) | Spain:13 | Japan:R-15 | Brazil:16

Filming Locations:

Kampala, Uganda

Company:

DNA Films

Trivia:

In the first scene in the village, where Idi Amin does his speech one of the spectators can be seen wearing a boy scout uniform with a Canadian flag on the chest.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the crowd scene in the village, set around 1972, a man can be seen wearing a Canadian Scout Uniform that wasn't issued until 1994.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Nicholas Garrigan: Come on! Are youse ready?

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 79th Annual Academy Awards (2007) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Kasongo

Great Acting! and Gillian Anderson!

I like movies based on real people in history. Because of the Oscar buzz surrounding Forest Whitaker now, I knew this movie is about Idi Amin. This is of course a familiar name in my childhood (asked in General Information contests), but I don't really know much about him, except that he was a dictator.

This film has a documentary feel to it. It is really very realistic, even if upon reading background info that the Dr. Garrigan character is fictional. Even though granted that the Idi Amin regime was compressed into a coherent Hollywood storyline, it does not feel contrived. The final sequence of events at the Entebbe Airport was very suspenseful indeed.

Idi Amin was not really the lead character in this movie. It is actually Dr. Nicholas Garrigan. Being a physician, I could not help but be able to identify with his situation and dilemmas. Would you accept to be the personal physician of a country's president upon his personal request? It seems to be an offer and career opportunity you could not refuse.

There is sex and violence in this movie. I could not agree though with Dr. Garrigan's rashness regarding his love affairs, particularly his morals of hooking up with wives of his supposed friends. But considering that this movie is set in the 1970s, that was a totally different world pre-HIV. The violence, what can I say? After watching one violent film after the other, you get sort of anesthetized already. That said, the scene with hooks at the airport was still something else! The acting is very good. Forest Whitaker has channeled the Idi Amin persona very effectively. I could feel the scary and suffocating craziness whenever he is on screen. There's something about this performance being based on a real character though. I think it would be harder to essay a totally fictional character since you have to create this new character from scratch. And I feel James McAvoy (who was actually Mr. Tumnus in "Narnia"!) did so very well as Dr. Garrigan. You dislike him, yet you can empathize the stickiness of his situation.

Before I end this review, I have to mention that I was very happy to see the luminous Ms. Gillian Anderson again. I totally did not know she was in this film and it was a welcome surprise. She handled her few scenes as the wife of a volunteer doctor very well indeed. I hope she gets meatier movie roles in the future.