SoTrumpBelieve
Must See Movie...
FeistyUpper
If you don't like this, we can't be friends.
Bumpy Chip
It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.
Edith Hobbart
Beautifully told, it also made me go back to History books to double check or to confirm. That's what good movies also do, they provoke you into wanting to know more. I loved Djimon Hounsou - a sensational film presence and his soulfulness permeates the whole journey. Anthony Hopkins is a remarkable John Quincy Adams. The great Steven Spielberg doesn't shy away from the horrors and some of it is truly harrowing but even then the preciousness of the image protects you from excesses. I don't know if that is a flaw or just a grand commercial concession. I couldn't help trying to imagine, this story even the same script in the hands of an Arthur Penn for instance. After all of that, let me say I enjoyed it, I was moved and I will see it again.
austinkemmetphcc
In 1839, a group of slaves aboard the Amistad, a Spanish ship sailing to the United States from Cuba revolted against their captors. Amistad, the movie, is based upon the true story of the group's journey from this point on. Within the opening minutes of the film, viewers are shown the awful conditions experienced on a slave ship. Immediately following is a gruesome, violent revolt warranted possibly by the treatment endured. Amongst the rebel slaves from Western Africa is a man named Cinque who emerges as the leader of the group before the film begins. It is him whose background is exposed around midway through the film in a successful attempt to further the idea that slavery is a terrible endeavor. Scenes of his kidnapping and experiences on slave ships expose the true cruelty that was shown toward slaves or slaves-to-be. One scene that was particularly unnerving was that of the systematic drowning of fifty people who were seen as no more than access cargo. The beating, starving, and killing of slaves who were deemed useless was not uncommon as depicted by the film.All is not grim for the Africans, however. They are supported by a number of important characters including president John Quincy Adams. In spite of the risks at hand because of the vehement feelings on either opposing sides of slavery, it is he who ultimately gives them freedom after it had been stripped of them on numerous occasions. Without the support of him, as well as others such as their lawyer Roger Sherman Baldwin, it would have been impossible for the Cinque and his group to return home. The conflict between those fighting for the Africans and those fighting to return them into slavery is symbolic of conflict that existed between abolitionists and slavery supporters. To conclude, Amistad is a film that rather accurately describes the case surrounding the ¨cargo¨ aboard the actual Amistad as well as the situation regarding slavery in the United States during this time.
kgwilson18
Spielberg expressed the 1839 Amistad story through a compelling courtroom drama. This movie exposes the absolute brutality and violence during this disturbing era. This movie changes people's perceptions of slavery and the early American slave trade. The story revolves around the journey of Cinque, the leader of the rebellion. Spielberg's use of flashbacks shows the endless struggle and the overall value of human life. Looking back, we see Cinque with his wife and family in their small African village living a peaceful and simple life, until he is ambushed and captured and sent across the world into a life of pain and misery. After, we witness the excruciating travels upon La Amistad. This scene, especially, portrayed the absolutely horrendous and deplorable conditions the slaves lived in on the ship; Illness, starvation, abuse, and suicide. The Amistad explores the will and cry for freedom, as it portrays the disturbance in American history. I believe Spielberg successfully expressed the rebellion, and Pre-Civil War America. If you can look past the graphic scenes and the disturbing violence portrayed in this film, you will enjoy it.
cgoossen-67167
I am the type of person that typically enjoys a great action packed movie filled with explosions, gunshots, and great characters. Going into this movie I predicted that I would not enjoy it, because it is the exact opposite of what I enjoy. There was hardly any action, but there was some, like the multiple scenes on the slave trading boats. Even with this limited action I still really enjoyed these last 3 hours.The movie had some very gruesome scenes in it, like when the slaves were being whipped, and blood was everywhere. This may not be a movie for all, but if you are willing to overlook these scenes and see the big picture, you will enjoy it. The whole purpose is to show how bad slavery is, and what these slaves had to go through. Black people were considered property at this point in time, even though they were living human beings. Getting away from the big picture things in thin movie, there were some details that were historically inaccurate. MArtin van Buren was campaigning for the 1840 election, even though presidents didn't campaign at that time. Or that this was about foreign slave trade, and that it had nothing to do with domestic slave trade. Lastly, lots of people were talking about the civil war even though it was about 20 years in advance.Another detail I didn't like was that all of the slaves spoke in their native language of Mende, and that I either didn't understand it, or I had t read closed captions. It would have been much better if they spoke in English.If you are willing to look over these couple of details, and look at the big picture of what is going on in this movie, then it is for you. I was one of the people who could look it over, so I enjoyed it. I got the point of the horrible human crime of slavery, and the struggle to abolish the slave trade.
