Review of Invictus (2009) by Jason G — 02 Nov 2013

If you are looking to be inspired, Invictus is the movie for you. Morgan Freeman delivers a spot on performance as the great Nelson Mandela. Freeman, always the wise old sage is no exception in this role, playing a father figure to a healing nation. Just when you think the cultural, social, racial, economic, and political divides in the world can't get any worse, Invictus reminds us that there is still good, there are still great leaders, and still hope for the future. What Invictus does best is inspire.

It is not a perfect movie. As far as stories go, it is short on conflict. Sure, it's a retelling of true events, so we can cut it some slack, but it seems that the racial divide in South Africa (which serves as the film's Antagonist) could have been given more weight. It feels like (and what does this author know, he wasn't there) the race issue was Hollywood whitewashed. Did the slide from ugly hatred and divisiveness to unity really happen so smoothly without setbacks? Why not put in a setback to create a little more tension, and thus make the final scene more satisfying? On another note, Matt Damon's character could have had a bit more depth, though Damon does a great job working the material he is given. Finally, a movie about rugby could have done a better job of explaining to the uninitiated exactly how rugby works.

Overall, Invictus delivers a solid and moving historical depiction that will give you the warm fuzzies. Not perfect in its delivery, but well worth watching.