Acting Perfected

Rating: 10/10 (19 April 2007)

When an actor gets "into" a role, it can often make or break a film. If they've researched and prepared and are ready to give 100% to the production, then you're more than likely going to have a successful movie. Movie-goers saw this with Phillip Seymour Hoffman in his portrayal of CAPOTE which won him the Oscar, the Golden Globe and so many other accolades that it'd take up half of a page to list them all. Not surprising, Forest Whitaker has mirrored Hoffman's success with last year's astounding THE LAST KING OF Scotland.
When you don't see the actor and only see the character, the person doing the portrayal has bottled solid gold for viewers, and Whitaker certainly did this. His breathtaking performance as the deranged dictator General Idi Amin, former president of Uganda, was perfect. Mannerisms, voice, those strangely vacant eyes, they were all eerily present.
Although a fictional representation on real events, The Last King of Scotland holds more fact than fiction. Even though one of its main characters (James McAvoy as Dr. Nicholas Garrigan) never really existed, the film inserts him in order for us to see what it was like being on the inside of this bizarre man's government. The brutality of 300,000 slaughter Ugandans is never seen but only hinted at because Dr. Garrigan and the rest of Amin's advisors are never privy to such information, being held tightly to the General's chest. As Idi Amin's paranoia begins surfacing more and more, Dr. Garrigan realizes how dangerous a position he's in  that being so close to such an unstable figurehead.
The cracks in Amin's persona are brutally and perfectly presented by Whitaker. His mood swings from friend to foe happen in the blink of the proverbial eye, and Whitaker makes it all completely believable. The stress Dr. Garrigan (McAvoy) feels is ratcheted up as he realizes he's not really the President's doctor but the prisoner of a genocidal maniac. This added an excellent level of texture to the film, giving the audience someone to care and worry about.
Probably the strangest thing about this entire time in history is that many Ugandans still view Idi Amin as a "great President/leader." This is focused on in the extra features of the DVD, making many watchers scratch their heads in dismay, no doubt.
Regardless of your views on the man, Whitaker's portrayal of Idi Amin is so impressive you won't be able to take your eyes off the screen.