South Africa, Canada · 2011
Rated R · 1h 47m
Director Darrell James Roodt
Starring Jennifer Hudson, Terrence Howard, Elias Koteas, Wendy Crewson
Genre Drama
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A drama that chronicles the life of Winnie Mandela from her childhood through her marriage and her husband's incarceration.
Poor Hudson tries to live up to both the character and the clothes, but she isn’t anywhere near assertive enough a screen presence; whenever she’s supposed to be rallying a crowd or shouting down her oppressors she looks painfully aware of her own inadequacy.
Director Darrell Roodt’s by-the-numbers biopic suffers from clunky dialogue and shallow characterization, all while never deciding what to make of its leading lady.
The Hollywood Reporter by David Rooney
Solid performances are undercut by lack of storytelling integrity in this plodding biopic.
New York Daily News by Joe Neumaier
Any urgency the movie has comes from co-star Terrence Howard, a firebrand of an actor who can’t be contained by a paint-by-numbers script.
Decently acted despite screenplay shortcomings.
The Globe and Mail (Toronto) by Rick Groen
Winnie begins as hagiography and ends in hellish confusion.
Los Angeles Times by Sheri Linden
Like many a biopic before it, Winnie Mandela shoehorns an exceptional life into the standard template of a highlights reel, lurching from one Important Moment to the next.
For every drop of black blood spilled...A white man pays.