Sarah Barcant, a lawyer in New York City who grew up in South Africa, returns to her childhood dwelling place to intercede for Alex Mpondo, a Black South African politician who was tortured during apartheid.
Acting
Ejiofor's trembling restraint will wreck you.
Direction
Hooper's close-ups force you to witness.
Writing
Dialogue that chokes on its own truth.
Director
Tom Hooper
Chiwetel Ejiofor
Alex Mpondo
Hilary Swank
Sarah Barcant
Jamie Bartlett
Dirk Hendricks
Ian Roberts
Piet Müller
Marius Weyers
Ben Hoffman
Greg Latter
Mannie Bester
Elize Cawood
Anna Hoffman
Robin Smith
Duty Officer
Wilson Dunster
District Judge
Jennifer Steyn
Marie Müller
David Dennis
Police Superintendent
Junior Singo
Sipho
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Hooper shot this before his Oscar-winning streak; you can see the same suffocating intimacy he'd later bring to The King's Speech.
Based on Gillian Slovo's novel, whose parents were anti-apartheid activists—her mother was assassinated by letter bomb, making this fiction feel like memoir in disguise.
US
GB
