sandwichjohnfilms

Race, love, colonialism, politics, and diamonds are all on the table in the period drama A United Kingdom Review by Matt Cummings A United Kingdom posits an important question without being willing to come up with an answer: why is race still such a politically-charged subject for so many around the world? Viewers will need to find those answers elsewhere, although the few that will see this indie drama will enjoy the well-appointed acting and beautifully-shot landscapes, while chagrining at its paint-by-the-numbers racist villains. Seretse Khama (David Oyelowo), heir to the kingdom of Bechuanaland and (eventually) his country’s first democratically-elected president, falls in love with Ruth (Rosamund Pike) while studying law in 1947 London. Ruth, a beautiful but simple office worker, shares Khama's love of jazz, but is aware that many (including her father) don't approve of her grand plan to marry Khama. Neither does the English government, lead by a snooty ch...

The period piece Belle suffers from a fluff script but looks amazing in the process. Review by: Matt Cummings If an image can tell a thousand words, then the painting featured at the end of the period piece Belle could fill a library. And while its story of 18th Century English slavery and social convention looks amazing, it's too self-congratulatory and lacks the emotion of a real winner. Inspired by the true story, Dido Elizabeth Belle (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) is an illegitimate mixed-race daughter of Admiral Sir John Lindsay (Matthew Goode), who is raised by Lindsey's great aunt and uncle (Tom Wilkinson and Emily Watson) after Lindsay dies at sea. Belle's half-cousin and confidant Lady Elizabeth Murray (Sarah Gadon) instantly bond, yet Belle's status doesn't afford her the same standards. While Elizabeth chases suitors for a dowry, Belle remains isolated and the victim of the rigid social patterns of 18th Century England. Soon, tradition collides w...