A vibrantly presented and emotionally charged portrait of the dynamic African leader, this needed tighter narration to close informational gaps. For instance, there is very little mention of F.W. de Klerk, although as the corecipient of the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize (along with Nelson Mandela), he most certainly figured greatly in the peaceful passing of the political baton. It may leave you with a few questions but otherwise captures Mandela's remarkable spirit. It follows him from his early days and tribal education through his work with the African National Congress to his election as Africa's first black president. Produced by Jonathan Demme, this wisely includes poetry of Africa, as much a part of Mandela's story as his own inner strength. Nominated for 1997 Academy Award for Best Documentary. --Rochelle O'Gorman
Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating: Summary: The Triumph of Freedom Comment: This is a great documentary that seems to capture the full drama of the life of one of the greatest men of our times. This portrait of Nelson Mandela reflects upon the triumph of freedom; the strength of his character, and also gives an honest look at the man's flawed personal life as well. It also gives one a feeling for the breadth and majesty of the South Africa and the African people.
The soundtrack and cinematography are also outstanding. Customer Rating: Summary: Amazing set. ALL REGION! NOT Region 2... read on Comment: First off, this dvd set is ALL REGION, NTSC. It says so directly on the back of the box and plays perfectly in my Region 1 NTSC dvd player.
As for this box set. WOW! Palm Pictures went all out. The documentary is very interesting and informative, but I had very little knowledge of Mandela's life before seeing this so keep that in mind. The music cd is stellar. An amazing collection of 26 songs from South African musicians. Add huge booklet and the poster map and you can tell some thought and care was put into this set. Customer Rating: Summary: Disagree with the Editorial Review greatly on this point Comment: Specifically, the narritive flow was good, and it gave persons a way to see the developement of Nelson Mandela and the freedom movement in South Africa. The statement that there was not alot about De Klerk, I also agree in substance and tone. De Klerk appeared commensurate to what Nelson Mandela had been saying all of his life, that he was always against racism, no pro one ethnic group or the other. This is something that De Klerk was not committed to from the beginning of his life apparently, and he, like Pharoah in Egypt, saw the writing on the wall with respect to the newness that was coming. Nonetheless, when Freedom finally came to South Africa, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who I know personnally, led all of us in a hand clap for Mr. De Klerk. This story, was about Nelson Mandela finally, not about Mr. De Klerk, and hence I didn't find the inclusion of De Klerk or the amount of time that he appeared, particularly out of balance with the main drive of the story. Customer Rating: Summary: Mandela: Son of Africa, Father of a Nation Comment: Watched with my teenager and found this to be a very nice review of Nelson Mandela's life. Starts with how he was raised and educated to be the assistant to a village chief through his election as President of South Africa. The initial focus on how he was raised and interviews with his sister and others who know him gave good insight into his character that made him such a fighter for justice and great leader.
