by rick grant rickgrant01@comcast.net
A Rated PG 111 min
Slavery is the demon villain of Amazing Grace. Based on William Wilberforce’s life in the late 1700s as a member of parliament and a dedicated abolitionist, Wilberforce’s long term commitment to ending slavery in the British empire makes for an intriguing and provocative cinematic work. With an all-star cast of distinguished British actors and a masterfully written script by Steven Knight, this period drama effectively exposes the evils of slavery while profiling a man who, through the grace of God, fulfilled his destiny.
The hook of the premise is how Wilberforce maneuvered within the British political system to end slavery without bloodshed. His long journey through the treacherous political battlefields is a study in perseverance and dogged determination to realize his goal or die trying. Ioan Gruffudd skillfully portrays Wilberforce as an idealist who is also pragmatic in his pursuit of ridding the world of slavery.
Wilberforce was elected to his political office at the age of 21. He faced many hurdles convincing his colleagues in the House of Commons to divest their interests in companies in the colonies that used slave labor, mainly to produce sugar. His best friend, William Pitt (Benedict Cumberbatch), was also young and ambitious. He fully supported his friend Wilberforce’s position on slavery and aspired to become Prime Minister, which would mean he would assign Wilberforce a high position within his administration.
Plagued by colitis after years of in-fighting in Parliament, Wilberforce seeks solace in the country home of his friends Henry and Marianne Thornton (Nicholas Farrel & Sylvestra Le Ouzel). There he meets his future wife, Barbara Spooner (Romola Garai) who fully supports his abolition campaign.
Then in flashback, Wilberforce recalls his struggles to Barbara, while recovering from exhaustion. It was during this flashback sequence that Wilberforce tells the story from the beginning leading up to real time for the rest of the film. Wilberforce leads a cadre of supporters including a freed slave, Olaudah Aquino (Youssou N’Dour), in his tireless efforts to abolish this evil on humankind. The ragtag group includes Thomas Clarkson (Rufus Sewell) who advocates revolution. However, Wilberforce has pledged his loyalty to the king and convinces Clarkson to work within the system.
Not surprisingly, in 1791, Wilberforce’s first antislavery bill is defeated by a landslide. And then his subsequent bills are also defeated. That was the time Wilberforce decided to take a hiatus and fell in love with Barbara. Encouraged by Barbara, and feeling better, Wilberforce plunges back into the fight with renewed vigor. He uses new tactics including taking British VIPs on a tour of the horrors of a slave ship in which slaves were stacked like cordwood and chained up with no sanitary facilities or amenities. Many slaves died under the most horrendous conditions imaginable on these cruel voyages.
When Wilberforce jumped back into his campaign, the tide was changing against slavery as more people were being educated about the way slaves were treated. It was a new dawn, but Wilberforce knew that he couldn’t get legislation passed, so he needed new ideas.
Renowned director, Michael Acted’s even pacing and overall creative vision for this work greatly enhanced the end result. Albert Finney turned in a tour de force performance as the remorseful slave trader, John Newton, who wrote the classic hymn Amazing Grace. He told Wilberforce that he was surrounded by thousands of ghost slaves who wouldn’t rest until he helped Wilberforce’s cause. Indeed, Newton was Wilberforce’s most staunch supporter, a man who spent his days as a simple monk trying to redeem his past and be forgiven by God. He is the conscience of Wilberforce’s abolition group. Remarkably, one of the group comes up with a brazen idea to get legislation passed–by trickery. They introduced a benign bill with a hidden provision that was so boring the House members passed it.
In the beginning, Wilberforce believed he was called by God to preach. But later, he was convinced that freeing the slaves was his real reason for being. Wilberforce went on to use his influence to make the world a better place, and in so doing he fulfilled his destiny. He serves as an inspiration to young people who want to make a difference.
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