Amazing Grace on DVD

Amazing Grace comes out on DVD tomorrow. A Christmas gift idea perhaps? It's not often that cinematic excellence, and a biopic on a hero of the Christian faith come together, as in this film. Jonathan Aitken -- who has his own story of amazing grace -- served as a consultant for the movie and also wrote the foreward to John Piper's excellent little Wilberforce biography. Actually, the DVD and the book would make a nice stocking stuffer. Here's a review I wrote back in March.

Shannon & I saw AMAZING GRACE last night. It exceeded our expectations. First off, it's one of the most sincere portrayals of authentic Christianity I've ever seen on the big screen. So, of course I'm going to respond strongly to that. Secondly, it also exceeded my "film critic" expectations. There was not one trace of the "Hallmark movie of the week" treatment that often characterizes historical, costume dramas. I hope everyone goes to see it. It's a worthy tribute to a great man and a refreshingly uncynical movie that has a lot to say to us contemporary folk.

I give a lot of the credit for the first to Steven Knight, who last wrote the excellent DIRTY PRETTY THINGS from 2002. He has crafted a thematically rich and elegant screenplay that manages to give us the measure of William Wilberforce and the flavor of the times he lived in. This is not a two-hour apologetic for Christianity, but the faith that animated Wilberforce's crusade against the slave trade is evident in ways both obvious and subtle. John Newton, played to the hilt by Albert Finney, played a large role in Wilberforce's life and the scenes between Finney and Ioan Gruffudd (playing Wilberforce) are perhaps the film's most memorable and will emotionally resonate with anyone in the thrall of costly grace.

Michael Apted has always been a solid director, and AMAZING GRACE is a fine addition to his resume. I don't know the budget for this movie, but I'm guessing it was modest. In any case, Apted and his team (especially veteran costume designer Jenny Beaven) manage to recreate the era of Wilberforce with richness and verisimilitude. Enhanced by great locations and period detail, the film looked and felt authentic to this viewer. Little touches, such as the butler (played by Jeremy Swift) fond of quoting Francis Bacon, added humor and context.

Many scenes take place in Parliament where Wilberforce year after year brought his bill to abolish the slave trade, and they are deftly staged by Apted. I was reminded how important rhetoric was in those days when giants like Fox, Pitt and Wilberforce battled each other with words not swords -- sometimes the words proved more deadly. I read Sir Winston Churchill's "A History of the English-Speaking Peoples" when I was a teenager, and I thought of it as I watched this turbulent period come alive on screen.

The cast of AMAZING GRACE is excellent, including an actor with the lovely name of Benedict Cumberbatch (playing William Pitt). Gruffudd delivers a solid leading man performance and veterans like Michael Gambon and Albert Finney support superbly. Romola Garai looks lovely and is believable as Barbara Spooner, the supporter, intellectual equal, and finally, wife of the famous MP from Hull.

The reason the British slave trade hung on for so long was because many in the ruling class had a vested economic interest in it and the average citizen never saw the horrific reality of it. Once Wilberforce and his band began to speak truth to power and educate the public the tide slowly turned. Can you think of any issues of justice and mercy in today's America that you could say the same of? It took 20 years for Wilberforce to get his abolition bill passed. As we see in the film, the fight took a tremendous emotional and physical toll. What enabled him to persevere? Providentially, his marriage to Barbara turned out to be a source of joy and renewed energy, but behind it all lay his conviction that the fight for justice is rooted in the cross of Christ.

"If we would...rejoice in Christ as triumphantly as the first Christians did; we must learn, like them to repose our entire trust in him and to adopt the language of the apostle, 'God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of Jesus Christ', 'who of God is made unto us wisdom and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption'."

WILLIAM WILBERFORCE