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Endgame
South Africa in 1985, the country is a political boiling pot when a
British mining company with invested interested in the lucratice gold
mines of SAF make a call to action and possibly save their mining
profits, they notify their head of public affairs Michael Young (Johnny
Lee Miller) to come to a agreement between the Afrikaners, headed by
philosophy professor Willie Esterhuyse (William Hurt) and the African
National Congress leader Thabo Mbeki (Chiwetel Ejiofor), to free the
currently jailed Nelson Mandela and ultimately ending the dispute
tearing the country apart, though despite all the work from all parties
involved, the antagoniser and head of National Intelligence Service,
Dr.Neil Barnard (Mark Strong), is going to do anything it takes to make
sure the talks fail.
Endgame is one of those rare movies that slips well under the radar, it
did pick up a few nominations here or there, but never anything solid.
The movie shows a gritty and real portrayal of a South Africa torn apart
with an unstable government and two discernable sides. The footage used
is real and brings forward a slamming impact and sense of overwhelming
emotion, as the scenes then transform into the filmed script, you are so
compelled by the imagery and heart breaking storyline you can’t help but
feel slightly moved and only get immersed by the scenes even more.
The four key actors of Hurt, Ejifor, Miller, & Strong each put together
a brilliant performance in what would be easily considered a hard
performance to bring out. The dialogue has bleeding emotion and a raw
energy that is extremely hard to find most of the time. The confronting
subtexts of the film with issues such as racism, corruption, and
exploitation make you question even your own values and belief
structures as well as bring to lie the plight of thousands of people
still living in these conditions. The core of the film however is that
it is a thriller, with the extreme conditions all around there is a
strong sense of uncertainty as you follow Young through the South
African warzones and try and establish who is fighting for what cause.
Even though the majority of the film features table top discussions
between the two opposing leaders, there is a intense amount of gripping
tension held in the movie that is a heart stopper at moments and almost
overwhelming at times.
The feature is shot perfectly and the integration of archived footage
and fresh scenes are seamless, as well as this the young and sometimes
innocent nature of modern South Africa plays as a interesting backdrop
to a intense storyline.
While other, more bankable films such as District 9 and Invictus had
already taken the award contentions in regards to film portrayals of
South Africa, this film is a glaring omission that is well deserved of a
fresh look.
Special Features
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Cast & Crew Interviews
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Theatrical Trailer
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Madman Propaganda |
