Invictus - Morgan Freeman in A Good Story, I just cried (Spoiler’s Alert)

Instead of calling it a comedy drama, I would call it a well-choreographed story telling. A truly great story touches the deepest and softest part of our heart by telling the truth. Invictus, the Clint Eastwood film starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon, was an inspiring, moving, and thought-provoking picture that avoided using showy cinematography. It let the story unfold naturally by itself, capturing every small detail on the way without going over the top. Slowly and precisely, with the incredible performance and emotional details building up on itself, the film struck us hard with an anticipated but at the same time, soul-stirring ending.

     The movie is based on the book Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Made a Nation, written by John Carlin. It is the story of Nelson Mandela's first years as President of the South Africa, which causes unrest and outburst in the white population while the black population are still haunted by the shadow of apartheid. The national rugby team “Springboks” is seen as a symbol of segregation, a lingering residue of apartheid, and national disgrace among the black population. In a way to unify his people, Mandela uses winning  the World Cup to strengthen the connection and unity of whites and blacks by gaining people’s attention and support at one focus. But the Springboks is way too far from being “the leading contender”. To inspire the team, and build their positive image to the nation, Mandela seeks support from the team captain Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon) by convincing him to believe in what he and his team can deliver.

            

Still of Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon in Invictus (2009)   Retrieved from IMDb   

The choreography peaked with Morgan Freeman. His Mandela was so convincing that after watching the film, people complain about how when they saw Morgan Freeman in any other motion picture – they expected to see the traits of Nelson Mandela. Morgan Freeman was in fact the first and only choice that the equally, if not more, renowned director, Clint Eastwood, had in mind. The choice proved right. He went great lengths to study the mannerisms of the man that he was portraying and the result was magnificent. He disappeared into this motivated and wise leader whose ambition and emotions were all hidden under the tranquil exterior – how he was a little bowed because of old age, how he always kept his left arm a bit behind his body while walking, and how he always kept a humble smile on his face. The gestures, eye contacts, even trivial detailed like how he crossed his fingers while thinking looked exactly the same as what I’ve seen in The Fight for Freedom, a Discovery Channel documentary, which had some rare and precious footage of Nelson Mandela. Perfect stage performance with great precision. Morgan Freeman delivered the performance in a subtle and precise manner.

    In the first twenty minutes of the film, after the great performance led you into the story, you would begin to be overwhelmed by all of the many seemingly inconspicuous details that together build up the film. To be frank, there were not any tear-jerking moments in it. But with all these small details edited with the perfect amount of precision and friction, the film had surely opened the floodgates of a lot of people. When the radio broadcast announced his inauguration as the first black president of South Africa, Nelson Mandela looked blankly into the mirror as if he was looking off into the distance – and at the end of the horizon was the desolate, turbulent land of South Africa. This seemingly unimportant section lasted for no more than two seconds, but through it we saw a deeply-concerned man, fresh out of prison and desperate to rebuild his country.

Still of Morgan Freeman in Invictus (2009) Retrieved from IMBd

     Like small streams coming from various directions, more of these subtleties were captured from the wide-ranging society of South Africa, and converged into a powerful emotional uplift at the end. With traditional African vocals playing in the background, the horrified and disappointed face of the boy who got the springboks practice jersey turned into the smiling face of a child playing with the “Springboks”. The African American boy who was too afraid to approach the patrol car at first was carried on the shoulders of two white police officers cheering for victory. These eye-striking scenes made this film not only amazingly moving, but at the same time, unbelievably real.

     Addressing a highly political and sensitive issue, Clint Eastwood managed to blend the political information in truth-telling without being too pushy or melodramatic. The seamless and well-structured story line – the change in the family’s view of the black, the tension between Mandela's own security staff, and the slow progress made by the “Springboks” – carefully wrapped the theme of forgiveness and unity within and unveiled them little by little. However, the exquisitely detailed story is also a bit too lengthy, repetitive, and slow-paced. A lot of the characters, including the leading actress, did not have a well-rounded portrayal. The team caption, Pienaar, should have been depicted more thoroughly but instead the film devoted more effort on Mandela’s security guards, leaving Matt Damon’s character lifeless and dull. Fortunately, it did not affect my experience overall.

     As the entire Hollywood is celebrating the use of special effects and 3-D, Invictus proves that a profound story and delicate performance is what truly matters.

 Check out this beautiful talk addressing reconciliation and forgiveness