Straight up with no frills, Eastwood-style

Rating: 10/10 (18 February 2010)

Clint Eastwood has got to be my favorite director. No one can tell a narrative like he can. A good story, straight up with no frills in direction or extravagant special effects, and actors giving it all they've got either because Eastwood tells them how to or because they know they're working with a legend. Man, I hope he doesn't retire.
I can't believe I teared up in a movie about rugby! Okay it's not all about rugby but still!
The movie's about Nelson Mandela and the significance of the rugby world cup in that first term of his presidential tenure. I've heard of the man but honestly, before this movie I couldn't even tell you who he was and what he did. Eastwood provided sufficient background to the story of Mandela and South Africa without dragging the movie down with too much history, and he kept a good pace so that I wasn't never bored.
I can't say I know more about rugby now, but with a sports movie, you don't need to know the sport to feel the emotions that a good movie captures from the athletes and spectators (hence my tearing up at the big finale).
Having never seen Mandela on TV, I can't say if Morgan Freeman did a good imitation, but no matter - he's a consummate actor who embodied the character. I wonder if Matt Damon got nominated because this is his least showy role ever. It's pretty cool how he almost disappeared into the performance but I don't think that the role is substantial enough to warrant an Oscar win.