Goodbye Bafana

The picture was well based on real events and actual characters , regarding the true story of a white South African racist , a prison warden (Joseph Fiennes) whose life was profoundly altered by the black prisoner named Nelson Mandela (Dennis Haysbert) he guarded for twenty years . Although Mandela initially committed to non-violent protest, in association with the SACP he co-founded the militant Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) in 1961, leading a sabotage campaign against the apartheid government . In 1962, he was arrested , convicted of conspiracy to overthrow the state , and sentenced to life imprisonment in the Rivonia Trial . Mandela served 27 years in prison, initially on Robben Island, and later in Pollsmoor Prison and Victor Verster Prison. An international campaign lobbied for his release, which was granted in 1990 amid escalating civil strife . Dismissed President Bota , Mandela joined negotiations with Nationalist President F. W. De Klerk to abolish apartheid and establish multiracial elections in 1994, in which he led the ANC to victory and became South Africa's first black president .

This is an enjoyable as well as thought-provoking story about a warden and his relationship with Mandela , an emotive flick revolving around imprisonment Nelson until his freedom and inauguration as the first democratically elected president of South Africa . This story about prison and apartheid is very compelling made and deserving a fine treatment with poignant moments . It's completely convincing and makes a moving and powerful statement about the evil of the racism. It's an intelligent movie that shows the nature of racial policy and political events in South Africa . The picture has some strong moments as police cruelty on civilians as well security officers' brutality against prisoners and other people , including women , and infants . There's enough background information to give the spectator a taste of what South African life was like under apartheid , detailing hard confrontations , violent environment , fear and tension . The flick describes perfectly a great man who could have lived in bitterness and anger all his existence , seeking vengeance when he ultimately achieved power , but who instead chose to devote himself to democracy and peaceful reconciliation between blacks and whites in South Africa . The main actors , Joseph Fiennes , Dennis Haysbert and Diane Kruger give awesome interpretations and the story was professionally directed by Billie August . Twice winner of the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival for Pelle the conqueror (1987) and The best intentions (1992) , Billie August is an expert on literary adaptations such as ¨Les Miserables¨, ¨Smilla's Sense of Snow¨ , ¨House of the spirits¨, ¨Marie Kroyer¨, ¨Jerusalem¨ and ¨Night Train to Lisbon¨ . Any yarn regarding Nelson Mandela is a flick worth seeing in my opinion and this one seems to be one of the best . Rating : Better than average , worthwhile watching for historical characters buffs . Other films based on this historical figure are the followings : ¨Mandela¨ (1987) by Philip Saville with Danny Glover , Alfre Woodward , Warren Clarke , Julian Glover ; ¨Mandela and De Clerk¨ (1997) by Joseph Sargent with Sidney Poitier and Michael Caine ; ¨Winnie¨ by Darrel Root with Jennifer Hudson , Terrence Howard , Elias Koteas ; ¨Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom¨ (2013) by Justin Chadwick with Idris Elba and Naomi Harris .

The film was correctly based on historical facts , these are the followings : Nelson Mandela who was a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary, politician and philanthropist . He was leader of the African National Congress, who has been imprisoned since 1963 for allegedly inciting riots against the government. As he spend long time in prison amidst tight economic sanctions by the international community, and growing unrest by the natives who continue their fight for equality, and freedom for Nelson Mandela . Amongst mounting international pressure to free Nelson, as well as imposition of crippling economic sanctions, the South African government representative meets with Nelson and agrees to free him . One time freed Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was South Africa's first black chief executive, and the first elected in a fully representative democratic election. His government focused on dismantling the legacy of apartheid through tackling institutionalised racism, poverty and inequality, and fostering racial reconciliation. Politically an African nationalist and democratic socialist, he served as President of the African National Congress (ANC) from 1991 to 1997.

Goodbye Bafana is a touching, thought-provoking movie. Extremely well acted, I loved Joseph Fiennes (James Gregory) and Dennis Haysbert (Nelson Mandela) in their roles, and Diane Kruger (Gloria Gregory) did well, too. The movie has the slow, a bit mysterious charm in it, as August's movies usually do. The color scheme was like African dust, diluted, sometimes almost raw in the scorching sun. Music supported various scenes very well, without being too prominent.

The movie starts when a young prison warden James Gregory arrives to Robben Island 1968 and is addressed to keep an eye on Nelson Mandela, who is being imprisoned there for his political views. Gregory gets this mission, because he speaks xhosa, the local language, and therefore is able to read (and censor) the correspondence in and out of the prison, as well as understand what the prisoners talk to each other.

James Gregory is a faithful supporter of apartheid. He believes these black men are behind bars for a good reason and he supports the government politics. After he and his family witness a raid in a busy street, where black people are randomly harassed, Gregory has to answer the questions of his children - and his explanations sounded shallow even in his own ears. Very slowly, over the years, he became to see through the apartheid and change his views.

Dennis Haysbert was chosen to the role of Mandela, because of his quiet, distinctive charm and mental power. He did a great job. Joseph Fiennes was chosen because Bille August wanted an actor, who was tough and yet sensitive, someone who would be able to portray the change in the character in a period of almost thirty years. It was a very challenging role but Joe did a marvelous job.

There has been a lot of talk about his South African accent, and mostly it has been praised. I followed it very closely, and I think Joe did fine in that area, too. In some scenes the British accent is more or less audible, but most of the time he does a wonderful job.

Diane Kruger did a good job as James's wife, a mother of two, who was also raising their kids to support the apartheid. She opposed her husband being a warden for Nelson Mandela, because she could see that the close contact with the inmate made cracks to James's shield and his racistic opinions were vanishing rapidly. She tried to hold onto the apartheid views for much longer than her husband.

The movie ends to a year 1990, when Nelson Mandela is released from prison after being incarcerated for 27 years. The era of the new South Africa was to begin.

Any movie that deals with Nelson Mandela is a movie worth watching in my opinion. He is perhaps the only person in the world I can think of to whom I would apply the adjective "great." He was a man who could have lived in bitterness and anger all his life, seeking revenge when he finally achieved power, but who instead chose to devote himself to democracy and peaceful reconciliation between blacks and whites in South Africa. This movie, which I saw under the title "The Color Of Freedom," is interesting because although it deals extensively with Mandela, doesn't actually look at events from his perspective. The story is actually told from the perspective of James Gregory (played convincingly by Joseph Fiennes) - who as a prison guard slowly advancing up the ranks - met Mandela (played by Dennis Haysbert) in 1968 and gradually developed a relationship of trust and respect with him.

There's enough background information to give the viewer a taste of what South African life was like under apartheid, but the story isn't really about that. It's more a story of Mandela's impact on Gregory. At the start of the movie, Gregory came across as basically just another white South African, committed to apartheid and devoted to maintaining the white hold on "their" country. But slowly, as Gregory comes to know Mandela, he changes. Mandela's graciousness as well as his fierce devotion to his cause impacts Gregory, who suddenly begins to see Mandela not as a black terrorist out to kill whites but as a human being seeking basic dignity and equality.

Fiennes performance was very strong. Haysbert had a tough challenge. It surely isn't easy playing a man who is literally a living legend. He did well with the part, but it was difficult to accept him as Mandela. The portrayal of the racism that was so deeply ingrained in South African society was at times almost painful to watch. I suppose the biggest weakness of the story is that it's been denied by many people - apparently including Mandela. He did develop a strong relationship with one of his white guards, but it wasn't Gregory, who seems to have taken some liberty in the account he shares in his book, from which the movie was made. He is unfortunately dead and unable to answer to those criticisms. Still, this is a moving story, and there is truth behind it apparently, and it clearly established the qualities that made Mandela the great man he is, who accomplished the great things he managed.

I'd just like to make the point that Raj Doctor of Amsterdam's comment above is more than a little misleading, as well as giving a rather simplified version of the long and complex history of what became the Republic of South Africa.

He refers to 'the ruling British', a group apparently wholly responsible for the racism and violence which have beset the country. South Africa achieved sovereignty in 1934, and became a republic in 1961. The government of the country was dominated until 1994 by the Afrikaner community (a majority amongst white South Africans) who, as most people would presumably know, were certainly not of 'British' origin. One might expect someone from the Netherlands to know that they are comprised chiefly of Dutch settlers...

Britain may be the former colonial power in SA, but was not the initiator of the post-war apartheid policy, still less the force which actually brought it about. Britain gave up its African colonies in the 1960s, so has not "ruled" anywhere on the continent in a direct sense since then, and has not ruled SA since considerably earlier than that. The particular nature of the problems which South Africa has faced are based primarily on the relatively significant size of its white population and their attendant rule (dominated as it has been by Afrikaners) not on 'British rule'.

I enjoyed the film, by the way. A thoughtful and satisfying treatment of the subject on the whole, I thought.

Or at least through the eyes of a white man. Even if you are not familiar with Mandelas story you will able to see where this is going. The story of the white man/guard might be spiked a bit and his wife does not have much to do (Diane Kruger) besides the obvious (caring for him, the safety of their family and being a faithful wife, sticking with her husband through it all).

One thing is sure, you do need a really charismatic and good actor if you want to portray a man like Mandela. And Dennis H. is one who can deliver. Even if he may not be on everyones radar, he has proved (on TV, but still), that he does have the skills and the presence to do such a job. He is not revealed immediately in the movie, which is not just another (filmmaking) trick, but serves the story or better yet the relationship between the two main man. New movies will come out and they probably will tell a better story, but this is not a bad movie either (even if predictable all the way through).