I was cruising through my People magazine the other day when I saw a movie titled The Last King of Scotland. The picture caught my eye because the guy in it really didn’t look like a king of Scotland. It was in fact, an actor portraying Uganda ruler Idi Amin.
Ew, I thought…why would anyone want to watch a movie about Idi Amin. Then, I read who the actor portraying him was. It was none other than one of my favorites – Forest Whitaker.
Funny how much seeing that a certain actor is in a movie can change your whole opinion about the movie. I have liked Forest Whitaker since he was football star Charles Jefferson in Fast Times at Ridgemont High. I remember him as Big Harold in Platoon and Detective Rawlins who couldn’t get a word in edgewise in Bloodsport. But one of my favorite roles was as Jody, the soldier with a secret, in The Crying Game. I loved his accent in that movie! And I also loved him as John Travolta’s best friend Nate Pope in Phenomenon. That movie still makes me cry!
So now, he is starring in The Last King of Scotland as Idi Amin. In case you forgot, Idi Amin was a despicable leader who killed an estimated 300,000 of his own people. But Forest said he saw the role as a challenge. He learned Swahili and studied footage of Amin to learn his speech and manners. He got so into his role, he found himself having a hard time shaking the accent after the movie was over.
In case you are wondering, the title comes from the young physician, Scotsman Nicholas Garrigan, who is looking for adventure and is hired as Amin’s personal physician. He becomes a trusted advisor, but soon realizes just what he has gotten himself into and finds his own life in danger.
I know a movie like this will never make to the theaters in Jacksonville, NC, but as soon as it comes out on DVD, I think I am going to look for it at Blockbuster. I know it won’t be a pleasant movie, but I know I can count on a great performance by Forest Whitaker.