Less about slavery than about the nature of man

Rating: 10/10 (25 April 2000)

The confusion that can arise when two separate parties cannot communicate is studied superbly in Steven Spielberg's "Amistad". Though Spielberg superbly presents us with a wholely-coherent 15-minute opening sequence devoid of English language, the rest of the movie is about the importance of communication. There is a wonderful scene between Matthew McConnoughey as the lawyer Baldwin and Djimoun Hounsou as the slave Cinque where each speaks their own language, but without knowing it they enact a conversation ("How can I find out where you come from?" McConnoughey asks, to which Hounsou responds in his native Mende, "You want to know where I come from...")
There are also many moments in the movie when we are made aware of how a single word can change the meaning of a statement. Baldwin asks a jury "Do you know the difference between a bear and a brick? a pole-cat and a president?" in an attempt to raise awareness of the fact that the origin of the slaves is so important to how they are to be treated. Even the word slave is questioned - the Mende translator points out that in Mende, the word for slave is closer to meaning "worker". The pay-off from this is that the slaves' prosecutor (Pete Postlethwaite)responds "what is the difference?"
The key point being made in Amistad is that history has been ruled by too many people who were not prepared to understand -- in this movie we see President Martin Van Buren tuning his harp while a slave fortress is destroyed, and we see Queen Isabella jumping on her bed whilst Civil War breaks out. Figures of authority have the finger pointed at them in this movie, and it is right this should be so. This is a movie about truth.

The ending is very hollow. Do not allow the upbeat music to fool you - instead, watch for Anthony Hopkins as John Quincy Adams as he grimaces at the empty court. Though the slaves are freed at the end of the movie, there is a real sense that it should never have taken place. As we watch Cinque and his fellow Mende return home, it is difficult to feel anything at all except hatred of the negative nature of man.