REVIEW: ‘Invictus’

There’s a telling scene towards the beginning of “Invictus,” where Nelson Mandela (played masterfully by Morgan Freeman) leaves the presidential estate of South Africa at 4:00 am sharp for his morning walk. He reads a newspaper with a headline written in Afrikaner, which his black bodyguards don’t speak. “He Can Win An Election, But Can He Lead A Country?” Mandela refuses to dismiss the query as sour grapes: “It’s a legitimate question.”

The scene speaks volumes on the task laid out before the new president, detailed in Clint Eastwood’s latest film. “Invictus” is being touted as a sports film set against the backdrop of Mandela’s first years as president of South Africa. It’s an odd mix of topics to wrap around a film directed by Clint Eastwood, but the melange of interests works better than could be expected, even with the pedigree.

The fall of Apartheid rule is one of the defining moments of the late 20th Century, and no one man personified that shift in power than Mandela. Freed from prison after 24 years, then victor of a successful campaign against F.W. DeKlerk to lead a unified South Africa, Mandela knew the struggle he faced to heal a nation, and he focuses on an unconventional way to channel the passions of a country divided after five decades of white minority rule: rugby.

Nelson Mandela (Freeman) meets Springbok captain Francois Pienaar (Damon) for the first time

Following the fall of Apartheid, the Rugby World Cup chose South Africa as the host country in 1995. The South African national team (known as the Springboks), all-white with one exception, was an underperforming bunch, wearing the uniform colors – green and gold – that mirrored the former flag of the country. While most in the new government wanted to shed the colors and disband the team, Mandela saw an opportunity to unify his rebuilding country through sport. The president impressed upon the Springboks’ captain, Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon) the urgency of making a good showing at the World Cup, knowing it had the power to do what political rhetoric could not: get blacks and whites cheering for the same thing.

While Freeman is flawless as Mandela – his delivery and mannerisms are less mimicking the South African leader than channeling his late-’90s graceful demeanor – Damon is a more odd choice. He handles the Afrikaner accent well (not a thing to take lightly, as it’s easy for that accent to drift into parody quickly), but his performance as the rugby star is a bit quizzical. The charisma is there, but his team motivational speeches ring a little hollow. It’s a small quibble, in an otherwise solid performance.

There’s also the issue of bringing rugby to the bug screen, and making it digestible for the masses. The true test of a sports film is to make the rules of the game easily digestible for non-fans, and “Invictus” does an exceptional job of it. Rugby doesn’t have a rich film history (“Forever Strong” comes to mind), but “Invictus” is a fine addition to the pantheon that won’t offend true rugby fans.

The tale of the rebirth of South Africa is well-matched with the improbable World Cup push of the Springboks, and Eastwood treats it with equal parts gravitas and inspiration. It’s an improbably good movie, but no more improbable than the notion of rugby bridging the racial chasm of South Africa.