Movie Review: Film Analysis Of The Amistad

1) Did you watch Amistad in its entirety, from start to finish? Yes I did.

2) What are the times and places in which this film took place? The film took place in the year 1839 and focused on Africans, purchased by a Spaniard who placed them on a slave ship headed across the Atlantic to America, which was then overtaken by the Africans who attempted to head back to Africa but were unsuccessful and eventually stopped by Americans.

3) What insights into the historical institution of slavery in America made the greatest impression on you? The insight on slavery from the movie which made the greatest impact on me was the portrayal of the language barrier between the Africans and the Americans. In the movie, the blacks from the Amistad were seen as barbaric because of their different language as well as their inability to understand English. I had personally never contemplated how in regards to slavery, blacks sold in America were probably seen as stupid and even more bestial for their incapability to understand the new language they were surrounded with. In addition to their practically

I overall thought the tone of the film was very much historically accurate and that it in no way contradicted our text book. It gave a horrifying yet accurate depiction of the slave’s journey across the Atlantic sea, which is also described in our textbook. The film in particular connected in regards to the historical figures John Quincy Adams, John Calhoun, and President Van Buren. It accurately displayed how with the expanding anti-slavery movement came growing tensions between the north and the south. In regards to the growing tensions, the movie highlights how the south felt that to destroy slavery would be to destroy southern success. The theme of arrogance versus independence of the courts is highlighted as