WORDS CIARA FORRISTAL
Although John William Gardner stated that “History never looks like History when you are living through it”, those responsible for Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom were well aware of the historical significance and timing of its release. Released a week before Mandela’s death, and premiering in London on the night of his passing, this biopic, twenty years in the making, was shouldered with the responsibility of portraying the monolith that was Madiba. Justin Chadwick’s film chronicles Mandela’s (Idris Elba) journey from childhood to his inauguration as the first democratically elected president of South Africa as well as his relationship with his second wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela. The pitfalls of such an ambitious time-span are realized in this film, with milestones and moments quickly skimmed over, in a race to the Mandela’s most momentous achievement of them all, which serves as a denouement to the film.
The film opens with a utopian vision of Mandela’s rural childhood home with idyllic sunsets and the golden benefit of hindsight, which creates a pre-destined aura around the young Mandela. Five minutes in and the young Mandela is burdened with the task of removing the inferiority imposed on the black majority by their white counterparts. His baptismal-like awakening from the Xhosa rite of passage and the washing away of white clay establishes a symbolic pattern later echoed on Robben Island as Mandela washes away the white dust from his menial stone-breaking tasks.
The film moves quickly onwards to Mandela’s late twenties and his involvement as a formidably prominent member of the the ANC in activities such as boycotts of public transport and his arrests for such involvement. Chadwick’s portrayal of Mandela’s cult of personality, however, is hindered by his uncertainty as to how far to implicate Mandela in the revolutionary violence of the ANC. For such a key figure of the movement, Mandela is portrayed as keeping his distance in tutorials on explosive production and seems rather to follow others than to lead others in their revolutionary path to freedom.
Chadwick highlights that Mandela’s imprisonment on Robben Island meant that, far from being the shaper of history, he was to become shaped by outside events, particularly the radicalisation of both parties. The film uses archival film footage of riots and altercations and juxtaposes the accelerating nature of this violence with the incremental change of politicians’ attitudes and willingness to negotiate with Mandela. The film highlights that Mandela’s and South Africa’s struggle were far from over following his release from prison, and his struggle to lead a people who became disillusioned with the inevitable gap between reality and myth in his leadership. It is this element of the film where Chadwick is able to cast off the shackles of the biased pre-destined Mandela and create a more nuanced, human character that history should remember.
It is in his personal life that Chadwick adds shades of grey to the character of Mandela, with his constant philandering, and neglect towards his first wife, which at one point teeters on the brink of domestic violence. However, it is Mandela’s relationship with Winnie that puts both Mandela’s personal and political life in a more thought-provoking light. Their relationship, from its inception, acts as a microcosm to the struggles and power dynamics that simmered beneath the surface of the anti-apartheid movement. Idealistic in their love as in their beliefs, their relationship inevitably turns sour with Mandela’s and subsequently Winnie’s imprisonment. Their imprisonment and its psychological effects profoundly influences their methods toward the liberation of South Africa, with Winnie learning to hate and incite violence against the white minority, and Mandela learning to forgive and co-operate. The ultimate demise of their marriage, their inability to reconcile their differences is tragic and poignant on both a personal and political level — two inspiring, once united figures, separated in their pursuit of a common goal.
Both Elba and Harris give commanding performances in a film that at times is both restless in its constant motion and rootless in establishing the complexities of the political situation. Although, in terms of appearance Elba does not look resemble Mandela, it is his stature and his on-screen presence which radiates and gives gravitas to swooning speeches and orchestrated power-walks that otherwise would fall flat. Harris brings great energy to Winnie’s character from her manic desperation in the prison cell to her fanaticism when surrounded by the Mandela United Football Club and other enthusiastic revolutionaries. Harris and Elba’s chemistry ties together the plot and provides a bittersweet ending to an overwhelming achievement in Mandela’s career, which poignantly highlights the sacrifices and demands that accompany such great acts in history.
Considering Mandela’s recent death, this film pays tribute to a man who left an indelible mark on both South African and world history.The film is almost an encyclopedic guide to South African history which at times can be overwhelming due to its long time-frame however the key concerns and elements of the film are neatly encompassed in the relationship of Mandela and Winnie; a relationship which perhaps should have been the key tenant of the film. With three Golden Globe nominations, including one for the exceptional Elba, the film highlights how one man became inextricably linked with the fight for political justice in the face of adversity, chaos and personal attacks.
