Last King of Scotland


Thanks to Netflix, I am able to catch up on all the movies I missed when they came out. The Last King of Scotland, which won Forrest Whitaker a best actor Oscar for his portrayal of the murderous Idi Amin, is one of those movies that both draws you in and repels you.
Amin's years in power parallel my junior high through college years. I remember the stories, and of course there was the daring raid by the Israeli's at Entebbe Airport, which freed the Israeli hostages. In this movie we see from the inside how a charming and gregarious man is revealed to be erratic and even mad. We learn that Amin's origins as a poor villager turned British soldier, led to his rise to power in a coup that was welcomed by his people and the International community.

The movie tells a fictionalized version of Amin's story from the perspective of a young Scottish doctor who, according to the movie, goes to Uganda on a post-graduation lark, just as Amin comes to power. He's sucked into the dictator's entourage, becoming his personal physician and close advisor. In time, however, he finds himself over his head and unable to deal with the violence and decadence that surrounds him.
The key thing I take from this goes back to that old adage of Lord Acton -- "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Like most despots, Amin became increasingly paranoid, and his paranoia turned to horrible violence against his people.

This is not a movie for the faint of heart. It is filled with violence and sexuality. It gets it's R for a reason. But if we wish to understand despotism and corruption, this is a movie that should be seen. And yes Whitaker deserves his Oscar.

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