The Last King of Scotland (Widescreen Edition)

This film is less an historical account of a dictator and more a disturbing story about power, control, and a leader’s ability to manipulate the minds and actions of others. A young, idealistic, newly graduated physician Nicholas Garrigan (played by James McAvoy) closes his eyes and vows to start his medical practice where his finger lands on a spinning globe—Uganda. He arrives shortly after Idi Amin (played by Forest Whitaker) staged a coup and named himself President of Uganda and Commander-in-Chief of its military forces. Dr. Garrigan attends a large rally in which Amin promises villagers “a government of action,” new schools , new roads and houses. “In my heart, I am a simple man like you” he tells the cheering crowd. Through a chance encounter after the rally, Garrigan treats Amin for a wrist sprain. He is soon called to the presidential mansion in Kampala where Amin insists that Garrigan become his personal physician.The first part of the movie is dazzling and joyful, a sort of honeymoon stage in the relationship between Amin and Dr. Garrigan in which they share respect for each other, and Amin grooms Garrigan to be his confidant and advisor. Garrigan is thrilled to join lavish parties and political operations until the stage show begins to unravel. Amin’s growing paranoia, beatings of the opposition and mysterious missing people lead Garrigan to ask if he can go home. In a complex, coercive discussion, Amin says Garrigan is like his own son, and must stay because his work for Uganda is not done. Through abrupt statements and looks that could kill, Forest Whitaker shows Amin’s mind racing with the realization that the one person he thought he could trust sees his deception and atrocities. Amin ends the conversation by insisting that Dr. Garrigan needs to “have some fun.” The lavish parties resume with a new menacing tone as Amin and Garrigan turn on each other, with Garrigan’s life at stake.Amin’s story seems far away and close to home at the same time, for everyone who has suffered at the hands of an administrator, domineering family member or other “dictator” who can control our lives. What administrator doesn’t have some element of Amin’s charisma and fakery to hide his/her utter dependence on the staff that does the work? Amin’s calculating decision to choose the vulnerable young doctor as his closest advisor is replicated by every narcissist who chooses a passive partner, and parent who abuses a child. Understanding the history is important, but the main value of the film might be to show the same evils around us.

Forest is a great actor

Early on in "The Last King of Scotland", we're treated to a microscopic closeup of a mosquito about to pierce human skin. The skin belongs to Scotsman Nicholas Garrigan, in Uganda for 48 hours shortly after his graduation from medical school for, as he has told another character, "Helping others...and some fun and adventure." The mosquito, obviously, is a foreshadowing device, both in terms of the pain Garrigan (as well as many in Uganda) will go through before the film's end; and in terms of how Uganda's new president, with whom Garrigan had a chance meeting the day before, will get under his skin and in his blood.Those old enough to remember well know both the snickers (Amin's full self-bestowed title was "His Excellency President for Life, Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin Dada, VC,[Victorious Cross, made to look like a British medal] DSO, MC [Military Cross], Conqueror of the British Empire,in General, and of Uganda, in Particular;" he also occasionally called himself "King of Scotland", hence the title)and terror Amin's character instilled . This film does a brilliant job of capturing this, mostly due to Forrest Whitaker's portrayal, and his interaction with James McAvoy (Garrigan). There is a moment at the beginning of each of their discussions when one isn't sure if we will see Amin, the jolly, gregarious "good father"; or Amin, the roaring, wrathful dragon....the "evil father," and one's stomach sinks, praying for Garrigan's sake we'll see the former.Not that Garrigan is a character who seems to deserve such prayer. After coming to Uganda on a whim, he leaves the badly underserved health clinic he's committed two years to in the lurch to serve Amin (as McAvoy explains in the extra on the DVD, to the wet-behind-the-ears doctor, Amin's audacious praise, and promise of comeraderie and confidences are too much for him to resist.) He is insulting to the British emmisary, then expects immediate help from him once Amin's jaws start to clamp down on him. He knowingly puts himself and others at risk of death. But most glaringly, his notice of the atrocities toward the Ugandan people, which start to become harder and harder to ignore, seems until the very end to be limited to how they affect him.Garrigan is a fictional character, but he serves as a mirror that allows us to see Amin in ways a simple biopic may not have been able to. Moreover, perhaps in Garrigan, director Kevin MacDonald (and novel writer Giles Foden)wanted to remind us how the world itself turned away from Uganda during the Amin years, worrying only until things affected us.A special film not only for its important subject matter, but the acting, photography, and the beautiful Ugandan scenery (filmed almost entirely on location).

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I first heard about this movie when it came out around 2006, I usually like biographies but I wasn't in a hurry to see that one since it seemed excellent but extremely violent... They advertised it as being based on real-life events, so I bought the DVD figuring it might have something to do with President Joseph Mobutu of Zaire, since I knew he had a personal American physician for 17 year, who as it turn out was the father of Hollywood actress Glenn Close... However President Mobutu was very peaceful and a president beloved by the population for all his tenure... As it turn out it's a more or less accurate depiction of real-life dictator Idi Amin Dada, who proclaimed himself "Africa's Adolf Hitler" and who ruled Uganda from 1971 to 1979. It's hard to know if the depiction made in this movie is accurate, but according to Wikipedia his 10-years rule has been characterized by "political repression, ethnic persecution, extrajudicial killings, nepotism, corruption, and gross economic mismanagement." The number of people killed during his tenure is estimated by international observers to range from 100 000 up to 500 000, and his behavior during the last years of his rule have apparently been deemed "erratic and outspoken". He died in Saudi Arabia in 2003, and at the time of his death his only income was a 1400$ monthly allowance he was reportedly receiving from the Saudi government. Regarding the movie in itself the only useful thing to say is that it's violent but really worth seeing and entertaining, it's one of the rare movies to had been filmed entirely on location in Africa... Forest Whittaker won an Oscar for his noteworthy performance.

Die Geschichte des üblen Freibeuters Idi Amin wird hier insofern klug aufbereitet, als es gelingt das Opfer der Verführung durch den Demagogen und Charismatikers Amin, also den Westen, in Form des jungen Arztes -gespielt von James McAvoy - ein Gesicht zu geben. Jung und unerfahren fährt er nach seiner Promotion zum Dr. med. nach Uganda, um hier Abenteuer zu erleben und kommt, ehe er sichs versieht, als Leibarzt von Idi Amin wieder zum Vorschein. Anfangs geblendet von Stellung und Privilegien und umschmeichelt von Idi, aber auch vom lokalen Repräsentanten des British Empire, dämmert ihm so nach und nach, dass der vordergründig unberechenbare, aber freundliche Idi eine Bestie in Menschengestalt ist. Minister verschwinden, Gegner werden umgebracht, der junge Arzt selbst merkt zunehmend die Paranoia des Diktators. In letzer Sekunde gelingt ihm, nach einer filmisch grausig realistisch aufbereiteten Folter, die Flucht nach Europa. Übrigens im Rahmen der Befreiung der Geiseln der historischen Flugzeugentführung in Entebbe. Etwas plump, aber ganz originell in den Handlungsstrang eingearbeitet, übrigens. Was kurz kommt ist das Ausmaß der Greueltaten, aber diese genauer zu beschreiben ist vielleicht nicht notwenig, es reicht auch so. Erschüttert erkennt man jedoch, wie leicht es Typen vom Zuschnitt eines Idi Amin haben, die Massen zu verführen, den einzelnen einzulullen, ohne das er es merkt, bis er sich wiederfindet in den Fängen der Macht. Ausgezeichnet agieren die Hauptdarsteller, wobei mich James McAvoy fast noch mehr beeindruckt hat als Forrest Whittaker. Spannender Plot, gedreht an Originalschauplätzen, gut geschnitten. Enttäuschend das "Making of" und das historische Doku-Material. Gerade über Amin sind die Archive voll!! Und das "Capturing of Idi Amin" - frei übersetzt "Das Phänomen Idi Amin verstehen" mit "die Gefangennahme von Idi Amin" übersetzt wird, sollte im Profi-Filmgeschäft nun wirklich nicht vorkommen! Trotzdem 5 *****

Look forward to watching this movie. It is difficult subject matter. Impactful.

Anfang der 1970er Jahre: Der junge schottische Mediziner Nicholas Garrigan (James McAvoy) will raus aus seinem spießigen Elternhaus und verreisen. Es verschlägt ihn nach Uganda, wo gerade der Diktator Idi Amin (Forest Whitaker) an die Macht gekommen ist. Garrigan ist beeindruckt von Amin - und schon bald darauf trifft er ihn sogar persönlich. Da sich der Diktator nach einer Ansprache bei einem Unfall verletzt hat, versorgt ihn Garrigan. Nach einem Gespräch im Präsidentenpalast ernennt Amin Garrigan zu seinem Leibarzt und einige Zeit später sogar zu seinem vertrautesten Berater. In was sich der Mediziner da hineinbegeben hat, ist ihm nicht sofort klar, denn Amin hat neben seinem Charisma eben doch die Eigenschaften, die Diktatoren in der Regel so haben: Größenwahn, Gewaltbereitschaft und paranoide Angst vor Verrätern. Als Garrigan das endlich dämmert, steckt er jedoch schon zu tief in der Sache drin...Der letzte König von Schottland - In den Fängen der Macht (Originaltitel: The Last King of Scotland) ist ein 2006 erschienener Film von Regisseur Kevin Macdonald, die Vorlage lieferte ein Roman von Giles Forden. Während die Geschichte rund um Nicholas Garrigan frei erfunden ist, gab es Idi Amin natürlich wirklich: Acht Jahre lang herrschte er brutal über Uganda, mehrere hunderttausend Menschen sollen ihm zum Opfer gefallen sein. Forest Whitaker mimt den Diktator wahnsinnig überzeugend und wurde zu Recht dafür mit dem Oscar ausgezeichnet. An sich ist Der letzte König von Schottland ein wirklich gut gemachter und spannender Thriller, der jedoch nicht ohne Makel daherkommt. So wird für meinen Geschmack der Fokus zu sehr auf Nicholas Garrigan und zu wenig auf Idi Amin gelegt. Ja, okay, so ist die Geschichte eben konzipiert. Nichtsdestotrotz bleiben einige Beweggründe beziehungsweise Taten Adims unbeleuchtet. So wirkt es für jemanden, der mit der tatsächlichen Geschichte gar nicht vertraut ist, wahrscheinlich überraschend, warum der Diktator plötzlich gemeinsame Sache mit den palästinensischen Entführern eines Passagierflugzeugs macht. Denn dass Adim Uganda islamisieren wollte, kommt in dem Film nicht wirklich rüber. Und das ist nur eines von mehreren Beispielen. Am Ende ist Der letzte König von Schottland aber zu gut, als dass so etwas die Wertung in den Keller ziehen könnte - und der Film ist eben kein Biopic, das darf man nicht vergessen.