“Invictus” opens this Friday

Dec 7th, 2009 2:50 PM UTC
By Steve Wilson

This Friday, the new film Invictus, starring Morgan Freeman, Matt Damon and directed by Clint Eastwood, opens nationwide. Invictus tells the inspiring true story of how Nelson Mandela joined forces with the captain of South Africa’s rugby team to help unite their country and begin healing the fresh wounds of apartheid. Chronicling one of the greatest leaders of our time and displaying the transformational power of courageous African leadership, it is a film that ONE is proud to support.

The movie takes place mostly in 1995, when Nelson Mandela—a man who had spent 27 years in prison for fighting against apartheid—is the newly elected president of a country that is still bitterly divided, both racially and economically. With his country teetering on the brink of violence, President Mandela, played by Morgan Freeman, saw hope in an unlikely place: the rugby field. In 1995, South Africa was set to host the Rugby World Cup Finals, and Mandela looked to unite the country behind their national team, the Springboks. It was a team that was largely associated with white South Africans, and that even was seen as a symbol of apartheid by many blacks. However, believing he could bring all his people together through the universal language of sport, Mandela reaches out to the captain of the Springbok team, Francois Pienaar. Matt Damon portrays the rugby player who suddenly finds himself in the center of a political arena.

“Invictus” was filmed entirely in South Africa, in and around the cities of Johannesburg and Cape Town. Beyond the themes of unity and visionary leadership, the film is also very timely; South Africa is poised to host another world cup next year, the World Cup of soccer. The world’s attention will turn to the country—and by extension the continent—next summer, presenting a huge opportunity to showcase the promise and dynamism of Africa as the world enters a new decade.

Finally, if you are wondering what the film’s title means, it is the title of a poem, which is translated to mean “unconquered.” In the film, when Mandela calls upon Pienaar to lead his team to greatness, he cites the poem that was a source of inspiration and strength to him during his years in prison. Here it is, “Invictus,” by William Ernest Henley.

INVICTUS

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

You can watch the trailer here on Windows or Quicktime.

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