Library News

We begin with the Sir Richard Attenborough vehicle, Cry Freedom (1987). Starring Denzel Washington (Remember the Titans), Kevin Kline (A Fish Called Wanda) and Penelope Wilton (Calendar Girls); it tells the story of anti-Apartheid activist Steve Biko (Washington). Set in late-1970s apartheid South Africa (an era of racial segregation in South Africa between the 1940s-90s), it shows how journalist Donald Woods’ (Kline) met Biko, a leading member of the Black Consciousness Movement who has been banned by the government for his views and exiled to a particular area at King William’s Town.

Woods [a white Liberal] is vehemently opposed to Biko’s and others banning’s, but remains somewhat critical of his political views. The film chronicles Woods journey to understand Biko and his views better, and the subsequent consequences for both men. Cry Freedom was positively received, being nominated for 3 Oscars including Best Supporting Actor [Washington], and a whopping 7 BAFTAS – including Best Film, Direction & Cinematography – winning Best Sound. Roger Ebert [Chicago-Sun Times] summed it up perfectly as a “sincere and valuable movie”. Its available to watch now on both DVD & e-stream and you can view a powerful clip of court speech by Biko by clicking the link below:

Remaining in Africa for the second entry, we relocate to the East of the continent for Hotel Rwanda (2004). Directed by Terry George (Preservation Road), it features the likes of Don Cheadle (Avengers: Endgame), Sophie Okonedo (The Secret Life of Bees) and Joaquin Phoenix (Joker). A depiction of the Rwandan genocide [7th April-19th July 1994] - that killed at least almost 700,000 people; it begins in April 1994 where tensions between the Hutu (government) and the Tutsi (rebels), two of the biggest ethnic groups in Rwanda & Burundi, are heightened. Corruption and bribery are rife inside the government.

The main part of the story is told from the perspective of hotel manager Paul Rusesabagina (Cheadle) and his wife Tatiana (Okonedo). He is a Hutu but his wife is a Tutsi, this creates great friction with the Hutu extremists. The movie takes is through the beginnings of the genocide after the President is assassinated. When Paul’s hotel is taken over by extremists, he and Tatiana witness the devastation and panic of war as they desperately try to get their guests and neighbours to safety. A truly harrowing but necessary film, it received an overwhelmingly positive response with Claudia Puig [USA Today] exclaiming it “one of the year’s most moving and powerful films.” Cheadle and Okonedo were both nominated for Oscars for their roles. Hotel Rwanda is available to loan on DVD, but get a glimpse now by watching the trailer in the link below:

From Africa to America – this next one is the most recent entry of this blog, Lee Daniel’s The Butler (2013). This film focuses on the life of Eugene Allen, a black man who worked his way up from a position as lowly waiter to Head Butler in The White House through 34 years of distinguished service. It has a large ensemble cast headed by Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland) as a fictionalized version of Eugene named Cecil Gaines; he is joined by stars such as Oprah Winfrey (The Color Purple), Cuba Gooding Jr. (Men of Honor) and the late Robin Williams (Mrs. Doubtfire).

Cecil’s story begins in 1926, where at 7 years-old he is being raised on a plantation, but when devastating events befell his parents, he is taken in by the estate’s matron, who trains him to be a house servant. After leaving in 1937 having turned 18, he bounces from job to job meeting his wife Gloria (Winfrey) before getting a job at The White House under President Eisenhower’s administration, working under Head Butler Carter Wilson (Gooding Jr.). His journey up the ranks is charted throughout the runtime, as he serves under different Presidents while navigating the political mind field each one brings and using his position to influence the rights of Black people. Whitaker and Winfrey were praised for their roles, as was the director – Variety magazine stated “Daniels develops a strong sense of the inner complexities and contradictions of the civil-rights landscape”. The Butler is available to loan now on DVD and you can experience one of its most powerful scenes by clicking the link below:

To finish, we have the powerful war drama Glory (1989) directed by Edward Zwick (Blood Diamond). The account of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment – only the second African-American infantry regiment in the Union Army in the US Civil War [1861-1865]. Matthew Broderick (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) headlines an audacious cast as the real-life commanding officer of the regiment Robert Gould Shaw; he’s accompanied by Denzel Washington (Training Day), Morgan Freeman (The Shawshank Redemption) and Cary Elwes (The Princess Bride). The picture opens with Captain Shaw being wounded in battle and sent home to Boston to recover. His father then obtains him a swift promotion to Colonel and command post – leading the 54th Regiment. Shaw appoints his friend Cabot Forbes (Elwes) his second-in-command, and some of the volunteers to join include – Silas Trip (Washington) and John Rawlins (Freeman).

Faced with unsurmountable odds, the threat of slavery or execution if they are captured by the Confederates and a litany of other problems, the group is offered a way out, but valiantly choose to fight and begin preparing for war. Glory was heavily praised with critic Richard Schickel highlighting “the movie’s often awesome imagery and bravely soaring choral score”, and Leonard Maltin exclaiming it “ grand, moving, breathtakingly filmed… and faultlessly performed”. This time Washington did win the Oscar, with the movie adding 2 other gongs from 5 nominations. You can watch this formidable story only on e-stream, but click the link below to watch the trailer: