The Last King of Scotland - The Myth of Idi Amin
maint on November 3rd, 2006
Director Kevin Macdonald explains the power that Idi Amin had over his own people through stories that were told about him.
Comments
Anonymous | October 23rd, 2009 07:13
Uilleam Uallas; 1272 – 23 August 1305...was a knight landowner,
Wallace enters history when he killed William Heselrig, the English Sheriff of Lanark, in May 1297.as an outlaw he led the scottish rebellion against Edward (longshanks) the english king
Wallace evaded capture by the English until 5 August 1305 when John de Menteith, a Scottish knight loyal to Edward, turned Wallace over to English soldiers at Robroyston near Glasgow. Wallace was transported to London and taken to Westminster Hall, where he was tried for treason and was crowned with a garland of oak to suggest he was the king of outlaws. He responded to the treason charge, "I could not be a traitor to Edward, for I was never his subject." With this, Wallace asserted that the absent John Balliol was officially his king. Wallace was declared guilty.and hideously executed.
wallace wasnt king, he never laid claim to the scottish throne.i cant refute your claim to be a descendant of wallace,however your claim to be heir, is ignoble , at best. your inquiry about royalties...contemptible
Anonymous | November 6th, 2006 16:48
very cool
Anonymous | November 20th, 2006 03:32
very not cool.
Anonymous | November 22nd, 2006 12:27
Cool? Cool is relative. I think that it is HOT myself. Sometimes the only way that you can find out what is going on in the World is via the Movie Screen. (The Last King of Scotland - The Myth of IDI AMIN)
JLB TJIWednesday 23NOV2K6 1521 hours ESTUSATODAY Happy Thanksgiving Tomorrow.
Anonymous | November 26th, 2006 00:42
¨Sometimes the only way that you can find out what is going on in the World is via the Movie Screen¨
Oh my god! Save us from morons who who believe Hollywood knows anything at all about history.
Anonymous | December 29th, 2006 04:45
cool or not cool that is not the question...
it is a work of art.. it is what is is
to make a feature film let alone a good one is a pretty amazing feat
so personally speaking beyond cool
it's the real deal & that's awsome territory
Anonymous | January 6th, 2007 08:40
very glad he is dead. Im looking forward to the movie
Anonymous | January 11th, 2007 09:49
Dont give idi amin any creditability. i have seen him and his regime as an 11 yr child, he came to my school function and gave a lecture to be good etc a fine role model he turned out to be after 1 yr when he committed atrocities -in humane: his soldiers use to stop us on way to school and ask us children to produce id cards, and his soldiers put shot guns at my friends and families head as ours was the only shop open because my fathers partner was a ugandan citizen. he died living just on tangerines at mecca--repenting his action???--should he have not recieved the same treatment as sadam hussain-death penalty???
Anonymous | January 11th, 2007 14:22
SOUNDS PURE MAGIC
THOSE WHO DON'T THINK IT'S PURE MAGIC CAN SOOKMABOABBY
Anonymous | January 18th, 2007 06:34
I talked to dozens of Uganda refugees in the early 1980's -HORRIFIC STORIES of ritual RAPE of WOMEN and CHILDREN, TORTURE, BEHEADINGS,- at the time, it was estimated that IDI AMIN murdered over 20% of the UGANDA population. -in fact, at one time, there were so many dead bodies clogging the Victoria Nile, that neighbors down-river were complaining. These were NOT rumors, these were FIRST HAND ACCOUNTS.
And the world turned a blind eye and did NOTHING. Just like in the Sudan today.
Anonymous | January 14th, 2007 07:50
excellent piece of filmaking
Anonymous | January 18th, 2007 08:39
Idi Amin was not as people prusume I was old enough during his regime, the governments that flowed were worse
Anonymous | January 16th, 2007 14:34
cant we all just get along,,, war dont work. it keeps all of us working class people poor on both sides of the coin..thanks to war we are going broke paying outragous gas prices..we can thank the republicans for that too..oh the movie...im looking forward to seeing it when it comes out on dvd...promote love not hate..peace not war..
Anonymous | January 18th, 2007 10:02
I thought it was an excellent movie, and we should be educate of pass matters of the world
Anonymous | January 18th, 2007 10:14
He was a real life living monster and ordered the most unspeakable acts that anyone can imagine. If there were ever soldiers of the devil on earth, he was one of them.
It is important to showcase these atrocities, much like Hotel Rwanda, many people in the world are ignorant to what is really happening in Africa. These movies are starting to wake people up! May Amin rot in hell with the rest of the monsters that have plagued this planet: Hitler, Pinochet, Pol Pot, Videla, Duvalier, etc.
Anonymous | January 17th, 2007 12:07
Will this movie shown in Mexico? Should we wait until DVD? The hystory shows this man as a bad guy. How about the movie?
Anonymous | January 17th, 2007 14:22
Idi Amin was a monster. To glorify him in any way is reprehensible and misleading to a generation that does not know the history of the man.
Anonymous | January 18th, 2007 15:36
Too bad they couldn't get Yaphet Kotto to reprise his role as Idi Amin. He was a good one.
Anonymous | January 18th, 2007 21:29
Hollywood sucks...
Anonymous | January 19th, 2007 13:45
He called one of his children "campbell" shows the calibre of the man!!! They're still hated in glencoe for the crimes they committed.. the campbells and the amins, good bed fellows....
Anonymous | January 19th, 2007 18:52
there are so many rumors,half truths and lies about idi amin its hard for the average person to get a grip on what he really was.he like most monsters was put in power by the west.if you call england the west.
Anonymous | January 19th, 2007 19:59
can't stop thinking about this chilling movie. the cast was amazing, the direction was outstanding. whitaker's disturbing portrayal will be remembered as one of the greatest pieces of acting. thank you for taking me on this journey.
Anonymous | January 20th, 2007 18:36
This movie is the best I've seen in a decade. Finally I'm excited about the art of movie making again. Really, I'd about given up, and went to this movie expecting once again to be confronted with another director's lame attempts at communicating their vision. I was happily suprised. Casting Whitaker as Amin was ingenius, every scene was telling, powerful, and set up to make the story believable. The movie not only addresses the politics and paranoia that incited Amin's atrocities, but also provokes thought about how this could happen anywhere. I left the theatre thinking about how many American Indians and Iraqi's have been killed. Unpleasant, yes, but about time.
Anonymous | January 23rd, 2007 12:41
was a very good film,funny at bits gruesome at others,but it helped us see some of the horrible things that happened in the country at the time,and gives us an idea of what is happening in many other countries in the world.very good film
Anonymous | January 23rd, 2007 13:36
How dare you gloat and curse Idi AMIN,to me He was a hero.
With Asians and their British masters plundering and exporting all the Ugandan wealth and treating native "pure" ugandans as second class citizens,he stood firm,tall,strong and defiant to be counted amongst the Africa's lions of the time.On the other hand I am apologetic for the Africans who lost their lives during his time in power.
To relate this to Iraqi quogmaire,I would place Saddam Hussein alongside him.Long live Idi,Long live Saddam,Long live Mugabe and forever die with losers such as apartheid and their dreaming sympathisers.Who funded apartheid in SA?,Thatcher,reagan and other devils who Amin resisted,do they get the condemnation Idi got? no,why????????!
People make me sick.
Anonymous | January 25th, 2007 07:37
I really enjoyed the film. Whitaker's portrayal of Idi Amin had me squirming it was so good! James MacAvoy played it just right as well. The supporting cast were superb. It has inspired me to find out more about the monster that was Amin. I went to school with Asian children who had fled Uganda but at that age had no concept really of what was going on there. Can anyone recommend a good fcatual biography of Amin?
Anonymous | January 26th, 2007 22:58
I think many nations could learn from goverments like the US. We never have a leader in power long enough for them to become insane like Amin, Saddam, or Kim jung ill. I also wonder when I look at all the past comments how many people of the world would give up voting in their own election just to vote in the US elections.
Anonymous | January 27th, 2007 13:53
I can't believe that any fool has praise for Amin or Robert Mugabi. All of the Rhodesians that were displaced in 1980 provided a home and food for countless Africans both black and white. For a communist dictator like Mugabi to have been allowed to come to and remain in power at a time when brave men were fighting communism around the world is a shame. Displace Mugabi and bring back Ian Smith. Rhodesians never Die.
Anonymous | January 28th, 2007 11:07
i think we should all be hesitant to take movies that are partially based on fact as truth. we should all reamember that this movie is first and foremost entertainment. if you find the subject matter intriguing, dont follow sheep. research it and find the truth or you will easily fall to propaganda.
Anonymous | January 28th, 2007 16:54
I have just seen the movie and it was great. The movie deserves an Oscar. I was touched. I wonder what ever happened toIdi Amin children that saw there mother been murder in font of them. That pure evil. Go and see the film now, if you already have not.
Anonymous | January 29th, 2007 03:19
i thought that the film was fantastic it really touched my inner soul you need to watch this.. very exiting and sad deserves an oscar
Anonymous | January 30th, 2007 21:02
Excellent movie with excellent acting. He was not glorified in the movie at all. It simply showed the many sides of man that can be turned evil given the power and motivation. That and probably psychological illness. It is fact and fiction - but a great portrayal nonetheless.
Anonymous | January 31st, 2007 16:03
great movie and entertainment. i wonder how much of the young doctors role was true. know where to find any information?
Anonymous | February 2nd, 2007 04:29
To the person who said we can learn from the American system of government.
1. HAHAHAHA!!
2. That's so sad that you are serious that it isn't actually funny. Read some world news. Preferably not put out by CNN.
Anonymous | February 2nd, 2007 10:32
This film was excellent in many ways, the acting, the direction, etc.. there are however, potential flaws in the plot.
Not enough pathos was created for the viewer to feel sympathy for the doctor and Amin's wife when they were brutally punished for betraying Amin. Even though his methods were macabre by any measure, ultimately Amin stood as a man betrayed on two fronts regardless of his treatment of his wife or the doctor.
Perhaps on some levels, this is the Spartacus effect of leaving the viewer feeling divided in empathy for the different characters which is the triumph of the film.
Anonymous | February 3rd, 2007 11:23
Explore the beauty of Uganda: www.matoketours.nl
Anonymous | February 6th, 2007 19:34
I am originally from RDC (Republic Democratic of Congo), and I wish one day to produce a movie about another african dictator like Idi Amin: Mobutu Sese Seko: I think the toughest part of that production will be to find an actor who will portray the crazy dictator.
Anonymous | February 4th, 2007 08:20
is very sad that Hollywood made a movie to glorified the monster of UGANDA HE WAS A MURDER A sadic a sick mental he rape brutal children, womens and old people why we have to create a movie for this mercenary ???
Anonymous | February 4th, 2007 15:41
Tell me something, Idi Amin was bad, but did he ever have any good side? i doubt. i have not seen the movie but read books. Amin was very bad, I think he is still alive, sorry to those who lost their lives. He was brutal, and well he took no nonsense from the whiteman, probably his only good side. The physician should thank God he lived to tell the story, if he ever did. Lived to tell the STORY...
Anonymous | February 5th, 2007 14:54
This movie was not good, the worst lies i have ever seen in a so called "true story" movie.
I am a ugandan living in europe. Am sick and tired of people in medie, books protraying Amin as an evil, heartless man,comparing him to Saddam, which he wasn,t. Saying that he killed half of the population, eating people and killing people and giving the dead bodies to crocodiles. oK so he killed a very few people who were against him but which president doesn,t even though they do it in secret. Idi is the best president we Ugandans have ever had.He opened our eyes and made ugandans first class citizens in our country. He was not a YES man,like many presidents in Africa who do what ever the white people tell them to do. He was there for us ugandans, he made Ugandans take controll of our country, other wise we would have been as South Africa living in ghettos and having hopless jobs.May God bless Idi Amin. I wish the medie and the rest of the world could understand what a great man Idi Amin was for us Ugandans. GOD BLESS IDI AMIN
Anonymous | February 9th, 2007 13:04
"cant we all just get along,,, war dont work. it keeps all of us working class people poor on both sides of the coin..thanks to war we are going broke paying outragous gas prices..we can thank the republicans for that too..oh the movie...im looking forward to seeing it when it comes out on dvd...promote love not hate..peace not war.."
Another idiotic liberal walking bumper sticker!
Anonymous | February 9th, 2007 15:16
A story that had to be told. Perhaps not wholly accurate but it captures the energy of the time and the place. I am a Ugandan, I left in 1970, I was lucky.
People who don't know the history or don't remember should see this film. Although sad and disturbing in parts, it is cathartic and it should give the people who were affected by the actions of Idi Amin to look at the old wounds, air them and give them a chance to heal.
Africa needs to look at films such as this one to understand that humanity begins at home, tribal thinking means war and murder and the future is about being a spiritual collective.
If you have never been to Uganda then go... it will surprise you, it is a beautiful country with an incredible energy and today has recovered much of it's spirit.
Anonymous | February 11th, 2007 09:59
very disturbing, Americans take so much for granite.
Anonymous | February 11th, 2007 23:44
"take it for GRANITE?" What the hell would that mean?
Please people. Granted. Granted. Granted.
Anonymous | February 12th, 2007 09:06
I was in the 6th form at school when Idi took over Uganda and my town recieved many of the Asians that fled at the time. We were asked to help with the childrens reading classes for one afternoon a week at the local junior school. I was aware of what was happening according to the media and it definitely had an impact on myself and others around me.
I met Idi Amin in exile, very unexpectedly and I was very concerned at the time because I too had heard all the terrible stories.
My observation was that he really cared for his children and was very polite and kindly. His family obviously loved him very much. I can only speak as I find.
Who knows the truth?
We listen to what we are told by our governments and sometimes I wonder if the truth is actually bent to suit, nothing would surprise me.
Anonymous | February 12th, 2007 13:23
Re: "take it for GRANITE?" What....
A reminder that not everyone in the world has English as a first language, although we tried to conquer everyone to make bloody sure they did :-D
Bless you who ever you are.
Anonymous | February 13th, 2007 04:18
Has anyone ever seen the house where the financial overseer lived in at the bend of the Nile? The landscape was trimmed to look like the animals of the forrest. The floors had beautiful hand laid tile. At night the servamts went to their houses out back,and the dogs were released for the dog run in front of those houses to keep the slaves inside their houses. Let's be real,the colonizers left behind brutal people who carried out their responsibilities with sometimes brutality of unimaginable cruelty. Also, why did the Hebrews want to go to Uganda instead of Palestine but the Balfour ...oh well, let's wait until after the Oscars are over.to share again. Poor Mr. Amin, who wanted so much more for his people. Maybe a part 2 will be made.
Anonymous | February 19th, 2007 22:30
This movie was intense!! I still don't understand why it was called "The Last King of Scotland." What connection did Amin have to Scotland? I was worn out by the end of the movie - Forest Whittaker will take the Oscar!!
Anonymous | February 20th, 2007 10:08
To the person that wondered, "... how many people of the world would give up voting in their own election just to vote in the US elections."
Alas, even Americans won't vote in the US elections. HAHA!
Anonymous | February 20th, 2007 10:38
"May Amin rot in hell with the rest of the monsters that have plagued this planet: Hitler, Pinochet, Pol Pot, Videla, Duvalier, etc."
Add Reagan, Bush and Henry Kissinger to your list. I'm sick of these mindless regurgitation of the propaganda put out by the West, against anyone that remotely threatens their economic interest and power structure to benefit the few. Poor people of the world, including in the West, should be wary of the increasing violent tendencies of the wealthy and the powerful in their own fold.