Quick Review: Invictus

The casting of Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela in "Invictus" was certainly not unexpected. What is unexpected is the film in which he plays Mandela. It's not a straight-up biopic. Instead, it tells a specific story while touching on the entirety of Mandela's life, including his release from prison and rise to the presidency of South Africa. Shortly after becoming the nation's leader in 1994, Mandela attends a rugby game and notices that blacks in the crowd cheer against the South African team, the Springboks, seen as a symbol of prejudice and apartheid. With South Africa set to host the 1995 Rugby World Cup, Mandela sets out to change that, in order to help unite the nation, starting with a meeting with the captain of the Springboks, Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon). Needless to say, Freeman is excellent, as is Damon (who bulked up for the role to look more like a rugby player -- see photo). There's a somewhat predictable sports-movie aspect to the World Cup results, but it's offset by the fact that it's a true story and one I wasn't familiar with. My grade: B-plus.