Review of The Last King of Scotland (2006) by Stephen Y — 07 Jul 2009

I held off watching this movie for a few weeks because naively I thought it was going to be about well...the last king of Scotland. However, once I got around to watching the movie I soon realized (happily) that the title was nothing more than a metaphor.

The Last King of Scotland is a wonderfully engrossing film. I was truly impressed with Forest Whitaker's acting and was happy to learn that he won a well deserved Oscar for his performance. He really deserved it. In fact, I'd say his acting was far better than Denzel Washington's in Training Day.

The movie is about a recently graduated Scottish medical doctor who travels to Uganda in search of adventure and perhaps, himself. When by a pure twist of fate, he befriends a military general who stages a coup and becomes the President of Uganda (played by Forest Whitaker). Whitaker's character has an unique charisma that draws the doctor into becoming the his personal physician and close adviser. Whitaker's character is both charismatic and edgy constantly leaving the viewer wondering when and if, he may just snap and kill someone.

Based on a true story, The Last King of Scotland is a good film and definitely worth a viewing. Especially if you're a doctor or simply enjoy watching a well made film that tells a story about a different part of the world and its history.