Invictus Review

Posted by Jeremy Thomas on 12.14.2009

The master of their fates; the captain of their souls.

Directed by: Clint Eastwood
Written by: Anthony Peckham

Starring:
Morgan Freeman - Nelson Mandela
Matt Damon - Francois Pienaar
Tony Kgoroge - Jason Tshabalala
Patrick Mofokeng - Linga Moonsamy
Matt Stern - Hendrick Booyens
Julian Lewis Jones - Etienne Feyder
Adjoa Andoh - Brenda Mazibuko
Marguerite Wheatley - Nerine
Leleti Khumalo - Mary
Patrick Lyster - Mr. Pienaar
Penny Downie - Mrs. Pinnear
Sibongile Nojila - Eunice
Zak Feaunati - Jonah Lomu
Bonnie Henna - Zindzi
Shakes Myeko - Minister of Sport
Louis Minnaar - Springbok Coach



Running Time: 134 minutes
Rated PG-13 for brief strong language.

Invictus is Latin for "undefeated" and comes from a poem by William Ernest Henley. Henley was twenty-six and confined to a hospital bed when he wrote the poem; his leg had been amputated just below the knee due to tuberculosis of the bone. Henley wrote the poem to state that despite a crippling and potentially life-ending situation, he would be unbowed and would bounce back stronger than ever before. The country of South Africa was in a similar period of recovery in the mid-1990's. With apartheid having just been put to an end and Nelson Mandela elected to the office of the President. Mandela had served twenty-seven years in prison for being a leader of the anti-apartheid movement and upon his release was looked upon as a hero from anti-apartheid groups both in and out of the country. Upon Mandela's inauguration, he realized that the country needed something to heal over, and that thing was the 1995 Rugby World Cup which was being hosted by South Africa. With the help of Captain Francois Pienaar, he set out to accomplish the impossible: to win the World Cup and to earn some redemption for South Africa in the eyes of the world. The event became a defining moment in the nation's new history, and is the subject of Clint Eastwood's newest film, starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon.

Invictus stars Freeman as Mandela, a role that he has been attached to in one biopic after the other for the last ten years. Upon his election, Mandela immediately sets to closing the deep racial and social gulf that divides his country. He hires four members of the Afrikaner Special Branch police to work alongside his four African National Congress guards, telling his incredulous security chief (Kgoroge ) that "reconciliation starts here." He reaches out to governments around the world in order to establish ties that have been lost for years under the reign of the apartheid government. But he sees his true opportunity when the Rugby World Cup makes its way to South Africa. The country's team—named the Springboks after a prominent gazelle that serves as the nation's symbol—is viewed by the blacks as a symbol of apartheid oppression, and Mandela believes that if he can get them winning, he can get the nation behind them as a whole which will unite his disparate people as one. For this plan he enlists the help of Pienaar (Damon), the captain of the underdog team. As the host team South Africa is guaranteed a berth, but none of the experts expects them to get past the quarterfinals. As Mandela tells his Minister of Sport, "According to the experts, you and I are still supposed to be in jail."

The film's script was written by Anthony Peckham, based upon the book Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Changed a Nation by John Carlin. Peckham originally titled the film The Human Spirit, and certainly that is what this film is about. The script plays out like the works of Peter Morgan, the man behind the scripts for Frost/Nixon and The Queen. At its core it is about the same core themes as those films; an event that allows a wounded nation to heal after a tragic period, and the actions of those in power that made it possible. Peckham's script allows the audience an inside look at the workings of Mandela's close advisors and associates without bogging down too much into the details. This is not a story about politics; this moment is spelled out clearly when Mandela's assistant (Andoh) asks him if his rugby plan is a political calculation and Mandela counters that it is a human calculation. Humanity and the ability to heal and forgive are paramount here. Similarly the script doesn't take too much time detailing the massive divide; instead, it cleverly uses the gulf between the two sides of the security team to symbolize the nation.

While in the country's case it takes an outward event like the Springbok's World Cup run to allow them to unite, Mandela requires no such event. The man has already forgiven his oppressors, and he seeks to lead his nation by example. It's an inspiring story, no doubt; the only flaw the film carries is in being perhaps a bit too inspiring. Certainly no one believes that a rugby tournament solved South Africa's problems; a quick look at the encyclopedia is enough to see that the country has had its share of difficulties even since. But as the story goes in, it allows for some scenes that seem a bit clichéd and unlikely. One young black child is standing outside of the arena during one of the games, and nearby are two Afrikaners listening in via a car radio. By the time the game is over all three are crowded together, breathless in anticipation; a celebration follows. These moments do not badly tarnish the story, and the purpose of inspiration and hope is well served by them. In the end, they are only minor flubs in an otherwise well-written story.

There are inaccuracies, of course; all "based on a true story" films have them. For example, Mandela never gave Pienaar the poem for which the movie shares its name (the actual gift was a bit of a Teddy Roosevelt speech). But it makes for a better story that he did, and it is true that this poem was one Mandela held onto in his cell and referred to for inspiration. It is fitting, then, that it is used in his story to inspire the world. The inaccuracies are relatively minor and ultimately do not detract from the final product. The point here is not to tell a history lesson but to make a film about an event worthy of being told to the world, and in that it succeeds.

There is one other, very significant way in which Invictus is similar to Frost/Nixon; in the performances. While playing one of the most important figures of the twentieth century certainly gives an actor the edge in the Academy Awards race, the roles are especially tricky and easy to make a mistake with. In Morgan Freeman's capable hands, that is never a concern. Freeman, much like Frank Langella last year with Richard Nixon, virtually becomes Mandela. The actor's confident and quiet manner absorbs into the role with ease, and his distinctive face requires what seems like a fairly minor amount of make-up to take on Mandela's expressions. Freeman has given many fine performances in his career but this may just be his best. As the rugby captain Pienaar, Matt Damon is similarly excellent. This may be a role that gets overshadowed by Freeman's fine performance, and that would be an injustice to the actor who handles the notoriously difficult Afrikaner accent with ease and displays his character acting skills in full form as he never once missteps. The supporting cast is uniformly good, with Tony Kgoroge, Julian Lewis Jones and Adjoa Andoh in particular standing out as the black and white security heads and Mandela's assistant, respectively. There isn't a bad acting performance to be had here, and even in a film of this caliber that is a rarity.

As a director Clint Eastwood has proven himself amazingly capable over the years. Most of his work has been quite solid, and particularly of course over the last ten years or so. With Invictus, Eastwood keeps that streak alive. It is not the most subtle pieces of the man's body of work, but he makes up for it by giving his actors the free reign they need to excel. He lets the film steer around some brief moments of aimless, but otherwise the work is quite solid and he employs a solid technical crew as well. When it comes to the sport of rugby, Eastwood prefers not to let the story get sidetracked with an explanation of how the game is played, and this may be a turn-off for some who aren't familiar with it. He films the rugby scenes quite well, and the use of actual players in the roles (including Zak Feaunati as New Zealand star Jonah Lomu) is an excellent choice as it doesn't require a lot of long distance cheat shots or archival footage. The sports scenes are not that important until the final act, and by that point it is easy enough to get the basic gist of it. A touch more explanation of the game may have helped, and there is not much suspense to what's going to happen. In a couple of scenes during the last game the slow motion is a bit too reminiscent of what's come before. But in the end, these flaws are relatively minor and walking out of the theater, one is struck by the realization that they've seen the rare inspirational sports film that actually inspires.

The 411: Clint Eastwood's sports drama Invictus may not be the best movie of the year, but it certainly belongs in the top ten to date and does feature what may be the best performance of the year. Morgan Freeman embodies Nelson Mandela with indelible skill, and even Matt Damon's exceptional performance as rugby captain Francois Pienaar is overshadowed by comparison. The film ventures into uplifting just a bit too often to be considered a perfect film and the sports scenes may be difficult to follow for rugby novices, but otherwise this is an excellent film that trumps nearly all other sports films for sheer skill and heart.

Final Score:  8.5   [ Very Good ]