The Forgiven – ABC Film Challenge – Thriller – F – The Forgiven – Movie Review
Director: Roland Joffe
Writer: Michael Ashton, Roland Joffe (Screenplay)
Cast
- Forest Whitaker (Last King of Scotland)
- Eric Bana (Star Trek)
- Jeff Gum (Rambo Last Blood)
- Rob Gough (Billionaire Boys Club)
- Debbie Sherman (The Vault)
Plot: After the end of Apartheid, Archbishop Desmond Tutu meets with a brutal murderer seeking redemption.
Runtime: 1 Hour 55 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: The Forgiven starts in the aftermath of the independence in South Africa. Desmond Tutu (Whitaker) is helping discover what happened to multiple victims of the war in the country. His latest person is Piet Blomfeld (Bana) a known war criminal and brutal murderer.
While the two clash to start with, Desmond is determined to learn the truth about so many victims. He wants to give the families a chance to mourn their lost loved ones and Piet has many of the answers.
Verdict on The Forgiven
The Forgiven is a drama thriller following two men from different sides of a civil war who must understand the world has changed. However, one’s crimes are covered up and the other needs to learn the truth to bring peace to the victim’s families.
This is a hard-hitting drama that doesn’t shy away from the horrors put on families during a civil war. It shows how not knowing can take so much away from the lives of the ones left behind. This gets to show an unusual relationship between a religious figure and a murderer who holds the answers. It turns into a grim reality of what happened that shows the violence put on innocent people. Though the biggest question is whether people can be forgiven to help bring about a new world.
Final Thoughts –The Forgiven is a hard-hitting drama on the horrors committed in war.