Marvelous film that captures both sides of the conflict over slavery as well as the horrific treatment of slaves

Rating: 9/10 (3 January 2016)

After watching the film Amistad, I realized how horrific the treatment of slaves really was. The brutal murder and mistreatment of the Mende people really left me deeply saddened and disappointed in the way American people treated the blacks.
This film really captured the definition of freedom, and what it meant to the slaves. The excitement and hope that you receive at the end of the movie due to the court case decision to let the Mende people be free truly gives you a sense of humanity that didn't seem to exist throughout most of the movie.
Cinqué, the leader of the rebellion, takes a part in a scene that is a very beneficial to the rest of the movie. He slowly walks towards the man holding the gun who had just killed several black men taking part of the rebellion, he soon fights with him and overpowers the white man and stabs him. The whole rebellion though it is very gory, but yet very intriguing scene gives us a sense of hope for the people to return to their homeland and be reunited with their tribes. Throughout the rest of the movie, Cinqué plays a huge part in the freedom of the people as he chants "us free" and gains the help of several abolitionists including Robert Baldwin, his lawyer (Matthew McConaughey). He fights for the freedom of the Mende people, that seems nearly impossible to win for the people since they had rebelled on the Amistad against the captors and killed all of them... The case seems as if there is no hope for them and they are for sure destined to die. But Baldwin finds hidden documents that prove that the Mende people were free citizens of another country and actually never were slaves at any point. William Hollabird argues that Cinqué's case is all a lie and doesn't make any sense asking him why the captors would kill their cargo off so brutally especially.
The slaves despite all of the struggles they've experienced are granted their freedom after much argument and heated debate amongst the American people and in the court room. This movie really captures the definition of freedom and how important it is to the slaves. Steven Spielberg did a fantastic job creating such a real experience for each of the viewers to see how horrific the slaves were treated and how important freedom is to each person.