For such a widely revered public figure, Nelson Mandela was oddly underrepresented when it came to major motion pictures. The South African leader, who passed away yesterday at age 95, was portrayed only a handful of times, mostly in marginal fare that barely registered critically or commercially. Part of this probably has to do with the unusual contours of his long life, 27 years of which were spent in prison -- daunting subject matter from the perspective of a filmmaker, who must place those decades in context.
The latest attempt to render Mandela's life and legacy on the big screen comes from director Justin Chadwick, in the form of "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom," a biopic that we got to see earlier this year at the Hamptons International Film Festival. Star Idris Elba brings a lot of conviction to the challenging role, giving Mandela great depth and shying away from the easy inclination to represent him as a peerless role model. As "Mandela" makes very clear, the man was not perfect. But he strove for greatness and often achieved it.
In terms of biographies of the icon, it's easily the fullest attempt yet at capturing what made Mandela such a captivating leader, with attention given to the passions that fueled both his personal and professional lives.
Earlier this year Terrence Howard played Mandela in "Winnie Mandela," about his controversial ex-wife, and several years before that, Morgan Freeman delivered a truly memorable performance in Clint Eastwood's oddly underrated rugby movie "Invictus." Eastwood wisely chose to focus on a sport instead of the plight of an entire country, having Freeman's brief amount of screen time speak volumes about the turmoil and unrest simmering underneath.
Other actors to play the anti-apartheid revolutionary include Danny Glover in 1987's "Mandela," Dennis Haysbert in "Goodbye Bafana" (2007), and David Harewood in the BBC drama "Mrs. Mandela." Click through the gallery below for photos from several of these films.
[h/t HuffPost ]
from The Moviefone Blog http://news.moviefone.com/2013/12/06/nelson-mandela-movies/
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