The Last King of Scotland Review
Oscar winning performance from Forest Whitaker
Forest Whitaker lands his Oscar winning portrayal of General Idi Amin in the film adaptation of the book The Last King of Scotland - available on DVD April 17th.
Forest Whitaker offers an scar winning portrayal of General Idi Amin in the film adaptation of the book The Last King of Scotland.
The book and film tell the fictionalized story of a young Scottish doctor moving to Uganda to 'make a difference.' While abroad, the young man comes across the charismatic, yet frightening General Idi Amin in 1970's Uganda.
Needing a change from the life that he sees before him, Nicolas Garrigan (James McAvoy) spins the globe on his desk and randomly points to a location. He finds himself in Uganda working as one of two doctors at a clinic tending to villagers - who would rather go to the witch doctor than a western physician. An accident finds the doctor tending to General Idi Amin's ( Forest Whitaker) broken hand, at which time he makes a strong impression on the leader. Invited to become the president's personal physician. Nicolas is rather taken by the president`s boyish charms, though he finds being in the company of the most powerful man in Uganda is more dangerous than he could ever imagine.
Special features included in the DVD release are an audio commentary with director Kevin MacDonald, deleted Scenes, trailers and several fascinating documentaries that illustrate embedding fictional accounts within the historical context and myth surrounding General Amin.
In 'Capturing Idi Amin' - the filmmakers expand on what was truth and what was fiction. One example is the storyline of Kay, one of Amin's wives (played by Kerry Washington). While it is known that she had an affair, the filmmakers admittedly fudged facts and took creative license for dramatic purposes. They illustrate this by matching stock footage taken during his reign with film clips.
Forest Whitaker also is featured on his own as he shares his thoughts on both the historical figure and the character portrayed in the novel.
Also included is Fox's Movie Channel: Casting Session for Forest Whitaker where the filmmakers explain in fairly great detail on the importance of finding the 'right' actor to portray Idi Amin. They initially thought Whitaker was much too soft and gentle to be able to portray the scary, charismatic leader, However, during the casting session, the director admitted he shrunk down in his seat because he became so scared of Whitaker.
