Great movie portraying both the good and evil sides of Ugandan dictator, Idi Amin.

Rating: 8/10 (5 September 2011)

I didn't have any preconceived expectations of The Last King of Scotland. I spotted the DVD on eBay being sold for a few dollars and I remembered that a friend of mine was discussing it a while back and got me curious. I was also aware that it was a film depicting Idi Amin and since I'm always interested in seeing movies about history's evil dictators I figured that since the film had very positive reviews it was something worth sitting through. With little to do one day, I popped in the film and was quite impressed by it.
The Last King Of Scotland chronicles Amin's regime through the viewpoint of a young doctor named Nicholas Garrison, who went to Uganda to escape his family life. He finds himself being appointed as the new President of Uganda's personal physician. He develops a close friendship with Amin as he provides him with the best possible life in Kampala, but over time he begins to see the horrors of Amin's terrifying personality as well as his brutal dictatorship that left thousands of people dead.
There are two key reasons why this film is effective. The first is the acting. James McAvoy is very good and certainly held his ground as being the central protagonist and everyone else did good jobs, but what is really worth seeing is Forest Whitaker's Oscar-winning performance as Idi Amin himself. He really brings the man to life and convinces you that he could be Amin's double. The performance not only portrays the side of him that is a psychotic dictator, but also the easygoing family man that would do anything to make the people he loved happy. It made him appear more developed as a character.
The second key reason for success is the film's willingness to push typical boundaries. The violence, while limited to just a few scenes towards the end, are really quite graphic and made me feel a little ill. Notably the 'hanging' scene which is just gut wrenching. The third reason is of course the great screenplay that made the fictional doctor, Garrison, seem like he may have been real and provide different sides to Idi Amin's character.
The Last King of Scotland is a highly engaging film that I highly recommend to any moviegoer provided they are ready to see some horrific things and know that what they are watching is mostly true. It's a great movie and well worth renting and watching, especially for Forest Whitaker.
8/10