Sometimes Casting Is Easy...

When the makers of Invictus were trying to decide who they wanted to play Nelson Mandela, I bet it took them all of about 2 seconds to arrive at Morgan Freeman. Not only do the two look alike, but Freeman is one of the few actors in Hollywood with the presence and ability to deliver a speech that is even capable of playing the part. Unquestionably my favorite narrator in movie history (i.e., The Shawshank Redemption and Million Dollar Baby), I'm excited to see how well Freeman does at pulling off the difficult role.

For those not familiar, the movie will tell the true story of the 1995 Rugby World Cup held in South Africa. Apartheid had ended, Mandela was president, and South Africa was in desperate need of a unifying force. Mandela thought hosting the World Cup would be a way to unite his people. Matt Damon will play the captain of the South African team that went on to the World Cup and united the country.

I've actually seen a few documentaries on this already, and I can tell you that it's really a great story. But if Freeman and Damon aren't a big enough draw, the movie is also directed by Clint Eastwood. I'm sure I'll touch on this subject more in future posts, but Eastwood's move to directing has really been one of the biggest blessings to American cinema, especially his work of the last decade or so. Although I didn't really care much for Flags of our Fathers or Letters from Iwo Jima, Million Dollar Baby, Mystic River, and Gran Torino are all flat-out terrific films, and Changeling and Blood Work were also decent. Hopefully the Eastwood-Freeman-Damon combo is a recipe for a great film.

Here's the preview: