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A United Kingdom

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Czech Republic, United Kingdom, United States · 2016
Rated PG-13 · 1h 51m
Director Amma Asante
Starring David Oyelowo, Rosamund Pike, Tom Felton, Jack Davenport
Genre Drama, History, Romance

On the eve of his return from his studies in London to Bechuanaland (now Botswana), where he is to become king, Prince Seretse Khama falls in love and marries Ruth Williams, a white woman from south London. The decision shocks both their families and the British and South African governments, for whom such a high-profile interracial marriage causes serious problems.

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What are people saying?

What are critics saying?

60

ScreenCrush by E. Oliver Whitney

The real treasure of A United Kingdom is the tender chemistry between Oyelowo and Pike, whose scenes together offer the film’s best moments.

67

The Film Stage by Jared Mobarak

Seretse and Ruth eventually stop being individuals, transforming instead into a concept of strength and unity bolstering the real plot despite initially seeming as though they were building it.

83

IndieWire by Kate Erbland

Bolstered by real events and true emotion, A United Kingdom opts for genuine, hard-won feeling, and the film studiously backs off from cheesy moments or over-the-top revelations.

80

The Guardian by Peter Bradshaw

Maybe any biopic risks naïveté in suggesting the agony of postwar Africa can be soothed by a love story about a handsome prince. But this movie has candour, heartfelt self-belief, and an unfashionable conviction that love conquers all - though not immediately.

50

Variety by Peter Debruge

These two are meant to be together, as the film’s clever title suggests, though all the truly interesting things they accomplished happen only after that reunion.

60

The Telegraph by Robbie Collin

Pike and Oyelowo have a hearty, wholemeal chemistry together, and play their small moments with sincerity and a light elegance.

70

Screen International by Wendy Ide

A workmanlike and sometimes clumsy screenplay is not enough to extinguish the spark from this real-life fairytale romance, which delivers both a heartfelt emotional story and a grim lesson in 20th-century British foreign policy.

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