MANDELA: LONG WALK TO FREEDOM

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (2013)

Grade: B+

Premise: The true story of how Nelson Mandela, a well-to-do South African lawyer who became a revolutionary and then a political prisoner, prevented a destructive civil war between the black natives and the white minority in his home country.

Starring Idris Elba as Nelson Mandela and Naomie Harris as Winnie Madikizela-Mandela

Rated PG-13 for strong violence, intense emotional content, some sexuality and brief language

And the rest, as they say, is history.

More and more movies lately have been “based on true stories”, which results in a certain amount of eye-rolling, cynicism, and the belief that Hollywood screenwriters are creatively-bankrupt, but there are some movies centered around stories that need to be told. Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom is one such movie. The story it tells is one many need to hear—that in a world where violence has reigned and always will reign, one modern man’s ideals of gentleness, peace, and forgiveness prevented a destructive war, and changed the face of an entire country. That the movie opened two and a half weeks after its subject died at age 95 makes it all the more poignant and powerful, important as it already was. Most people my age only really know of Nelson Mandela because his death was front page news after it happened back on December 5; most of us know little of what he did, and definitely don’t know the full scope of it.  That’s why this movie—which derives its subtitle from the late icon’s memoir—is necessary. It’s a shame Mandela couldn’t live to see the film, but even if it was made too soon to feature end titles about his death and memorial services, it’s a fittingly-impressive, memorable monument to a man the world needed, and will surely miss.

Plot

Born and raised in a rural village, Mandela (played as an adult by Idris Elba, and often referred to by his traditional African name, Madiba) leaves home as a young adult and becomes a successful lawyer in downtown Johannesburg, South Africa. Though his wandering eye and long work hours cause his first marriage to collapse, he’s soon seen as a leader in his community for doing what he can to work with strict apartheid laws. After joining in boycotts and marches put on by the African National Congress (ANC), Mandela begins to feel the sting of apartheid and its progressively-stricter segregation laws. Though he desires a comfortable, free life with his second wife, Winnie (a fiery Naomie Harris), Mandela eventually decides he can no longer stand pat while apartheid rules the land. Aggravated by the white police gunning down hundreds of unarmed protestors during the 1960 Sharpeville Massacre, Mandela and the other leaders of the ANC start a campaign of violent attacks, burning their government-issued passports and blowing up government buildings. But, in 1964, Mandela and four of his colleagues are arrested, put on trial, and sentenced to life in prison.

Imprisoned for 18 years on tiny, desolate Robben Island, where his main job is to break rocks into gravel, Mandela can only watch helplessly as his oldest son dies in a motorcycle crash and his wife is arrested, imprisoned, and then becomes more of a terrorist than Nelson himself ever was. As the years pass, a “Free Nelson Mandela” campaign starts, and as Winnie and others continue stoking the fires of violent protest, the white government begins to ponder ways to appease the populace. Soon even the white president of South Africa, F.W. de Klerk, realizes the primary way to avoid civil war may be to free Nelson Mandela and give him a seat of power in the government, and hope his claims of being reformed and wanting peace are as real as they seem.

What Doesn’t Work?

Like last year’s Lincoln, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom is largely a recitation of true events—it’s not a comedy, a romance, or an adventure film. The slow, history-book-come-to-life feel that was inescapable with Lincoln is very much in evidence here. Detailing events across more than 50 years in Mandela’s life, Long Walk makes key moments soar but, ultimately, until the last half hour, has a hard time gaining traction; you feel the movie’s 139 minutes. Ironically, even with that length, it’s difficult to not feel that some things aren’t given enough time, such as the difficult circumstances of Mandela’s imprisonment on Robben Island (I had to look up the fact that his primary job was breaking rocks into gravel). There are also important things left out completely that would have heightened the emotion (like the fact that Winnie cheated on Nelson while he was in prison). I’m very glad I watched Long Walk to Freedom because I learned a heck of a lot, but this one isn’t high up the entertainment scale.

What Works?

You’ll learn a ton watching Long Walk to Freedom; I certainly did. Mandela had a long, very full life—his journey from city lawyer to civil leader to violent revolutionary to “Father of South Africa” is intriguing; his Christ-like devotion to peace and non-violence (after 27 years of imprisonment) is downright remarkable. If it wasn’t true, there’s no way you’d believe it. The fact that the depicted events are real punches you in the gut several times, from the grief and horror of the Sharpeville massacre to the sudden shock of a telegram bearing the news of Mandela’s son’s death (marvelously-acted by Elba), plus timecards explaining that Winnie spent 16 months in solitary confinement, and Nelson spent 18 years on Robben Island. Plus it’s hard not to get a surge of excitement when Elba utters Mandela’s immortal words, probably the most sacred and hallowed in South Africa’s history (“If it needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”).

Best known as a supporting actor in a number of popular movies (Prometheus, Thor, Pacific Rim), Idris Elba has here been gifted with the chance to play one of history’s most important, influential people. That said, in covering so much of Nelson Mandela’s life, Long Walk to Freedom doesn’t exactly present an intimate three-dimensional portrait; there’s so much history to depict that small, character-building moments are few and far between. Do you need to do a whole lot of flashy acting in a movie like this, though? The best thing that can be said about Elba’s work is that you walk out of the movie thinking about Mandela’s life and legacy, not Elba. That is—and should be—high praise for an actor playing an iconic figure, though it probably spells doom for Elba’s chances making the final five in the Best Actor Oscar race. On the contrary, Naomie Harris deserves serious consideration in the Supporting Actress category for a near-brilliant portrayal; the fiery, explosive Winnie looms large over the film, a legend in her own right.

Director Joshua Chadwick deserves a lot of credit for making such a big, sprawling film, which includes plenty of re-enactments (and a great final tracking shot) alongside real video footage and photographs of the period’s key details. The makeup team has also done a superb job—I’m still trying to decide if the final result of re-creating the older Mandela looked more like the everyday Elba or the late icon.

Content

Though Long Walk to Freedom shows some impressive restraint when it comes to a few brief sex scenes (a little goes a long way), there’s a lot of intense moments, whether it’s a martial spat between Mandela and his first wife, harrassment by the Robben Island prison guards, Winnie’s intense arrest-and-imprisonment ordeal, or a great deal of mob violence. There’s real footage of people being mugged and beaten up, and though blood and gory details are fairly minimal, a lot of people get shot and some get set on fire. Human history (especially in Africa) is sadly filled with such things, so viewers should be prepared to face the sorts of intense circumstances Mandela and his contemporaries faced.

Bottom Line

Yes, it was in the works before Nelson Mandela died back at the beginning of the month, and yet, Long Walk to Freedom is a near-perfect tribute to his memory. It’s a long sit, and it’s not the sleekest or most engaging entertainment in its pursuit of historical accuracy, but chances are you’ll learn a lot, and you'll better appreciate a man millions admire and have spent the last month memorializing.

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (2013)

Directed by Joshua Chadwick

Screenplay by William Nicholson; based on the autobiography “Long Walk to Freedom” by Nelson Mandela

Rated PG-13

Length: 139 minutes