3 February 2020
A United Kingdom (2016)
A biographical romance based on true events, A United Kingdom is the story of a love that defied an empire. The controversial 1947 marriage of King Seretse Khama of Botswana to a white British woman, Ruth Williams, met with fierce opposition from both their families and the British government. The union threw Botswana into political and diplomatic turmoil, jeopardised the British Empire’s position in Africa and came close to sparking a war with the apartheid government of South Africa.
The movie stars two-time Golden Globe nominee David Oyelowo (Selma) and Oscar nominee Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl), as well as Terry Pheto (Tsotsi), Vusi Kunene (Cry the Beloved Country), Jack Davenport (Norrington from Pirates of the Caribbean) and Tom Felton (Harry Potter’s Draco Malfoy).
The movie has won a number of accolades. The movie’s director, Amma Asante, won the Black Reel Award for Outstanding World Cinema Motion Picture, while Guy Hibbert won a British Screenwriters’ Award for Best British Feature Film Writing. South African actress Terry Pheto was nominated for a British Independent Film Award for Best Supporting Actress in her role as Seretse Khama’s stately sister.
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