in lieu of an organized pfs this thursday, eric and i ventured out to see the last king of scotland. having seen the trailer in theaters, i knew going in that the main character, scotsman dr.nicholas garrigan, was headed towards a point of no return. his naivety in traveling to uganda and with idi amin, the new president circa 1970, isn't hidden in the least. the film throws foreboding music at you, signaling every wrong choice our protagonist makes. from accepting a job as amin’s personal physician (later his advisor) to starting as affair with one of his wives, garrigan allows the audience to knowingly shake their heads as he seals his fate.
the story centers on garrigan’s relationship with amin. coming to power after the overthrow of left-leaning obote, amin promised a new uganda, while only delivering death. the tragic journey of his people is hidden and rarely focused on during the film. we instead experience this traumatic time just as garrigan himself did, witnessing occasional hints of trouble that are all too easily washed away with amin’s charms and gifts.
the film of course faces the same problems any film about africa made by westerner’s faces. looking beyond troubling colonialist attitudes and the filmmakers focus on the white man and neglect of the ugandan people, the film does successfully bind the actions of garrigan with the journey of the audience. we, like garrigan constantly think we are one step ahead, him with amin and us with the film, only to be gravely disillusioned towards the end.
the specific scene that thrusts us into a very violent and sudden disillusionment, is one of the most visceral i have ever seen in my many years of movie watching, with many in the audience trying to fly from their seats into a safer, less confronting space.
it’s a lesson in cathartic art-making and in many ways forces the audience to deal with the ramifications of naïve white men's explorations of africa.
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