Synopsis
In 1839, the slave ship Amistad set sail from Cuba to America. During the long trip, Cinque leads the slaves in an unprecedented uprising. They are then held prisoner in Connecticut, and their release becomes the subject of heated debate. Freed slave Theodore Joadson wants Cinque and the others exonerated and recruits property lawyer Roger Baldwin to help his case. Eventually, John Quincy Adams also becomes an ally.
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Cast
- Morgan FreemanTheodore Joadson
- Nigel HawthorneMartin Van Buren
- Anthony HopkinsJohn Quincy Adams
- Djimon HounsouCinque
- Matthew McConaugheyRoger Sherman Baldwin
- David PaymerSecretary John Forsyth
- Pete PostlethwaiteHolabird
- Stellan SkarsgårdTappan
- Razaaq AdotiYamba
- Abu Bakaar FofanahFala
Recommendations
- 88
ReelViews
Thematically rich, impeccably crafted, and intellectually stimulating, the only area where this movie falls a little short is in its emotional impact. - 88
USA Today
Sheer power, moral and otherwise. It possesses a massively majestic hero. [10 Dec 1997, p.D1] - 70
Time
Alive to the--yes--sometimes humorous, and therefore humanizing, struggles of the slaves and their would-be rescuers to surmount the language and cultural barriers that separate them. [15 Dec 1997, p. 108] - 70
Variety
Aiming to instruct as well as entertain --- and often struggling to reconcile these two divergent goals. - 63
San Francisco Examiner
Scenes go on and on in endless, witless dialogue, ever accompanied by John Williams' hideously gushing music. - 60
Slate
After an electrifyingly feral opening, the movie settles down into a cogent courtroom drama, with no real cinematic highs but no jaw-dropping lows, either. - 60
TV Guide Magazine
Consistently earnest and well-intentioned but only occasionally moving, despite the efforts of a generally top-notch cast. - 60
Washington Post
Although the movie is moving and even funny in many places, it's also overextended. And composer John Williams's syrupy score practically oozes from your ears on the drive home.
