For what this movie signifies, it's very important and great on what it's representing, but the movie as a whole is pretty okay. It lacks the budget it needs to be great, but at the same time I give it a 7 because the two main leads save the film and are quite frankly, phenomenal.Those two main leads being William Hurt and Chiwetel Ejiofor. They give two powerhouse performances and pretty much save the movie from being a 5 and they're chemistry is real and pure as to when the final result comes at the end, it is touching to the viewer because of how great these two performances were as well as it's touching from the historical aspect of it too. Overall a pretty good movie.

Well, my knowledge of Apartheid is limited to my knowledge of a personality called Nelson Mandela and that he led a non-violent struggle for equality. That's about it. So, when I saw this title and the good reviews that it had received - I decided to try it out.Unfortunately for me, I was thrown into South African history (this was expected) and I was surrounded with over 20 character (this was not expected). Botha, Thabo, Mbeki, Alie Sachs, Wille Esterhuyse, some gold consolidations organization, a PR agent - within the first twenty minutes, my head was spinning. And thus, whenever a new character came on screen, I had to press the pause button and look up Wikipedia. That is how I watched this movie.So, for the first 35 minutes or so, I spent an equal amount of time reading Wikipedia (which was not bad, I got a lot of info) but what this means is that Endgame is not meant for the viewer who is not ready to break a sweat. Unless your knowledge of South African apartheid is not up to scratch, Endgame will make little sense by itself.However, once you know the characters and their motives the movie turns into an extremely compelling drama and a case study of how negations are done. This would make a terrific add-on to a history course. It is a very educational movie and the acting by William Hurt and Chiwetel Ejiofor was excellent and very convincing. The direction was also very well done and the script writing was very effective (considering the nature of the subject).In the end, this should have been a 3-4 hour miniseries. The treatment of Apartheid with proper introduction to the major characters ought to get that much time. Unfortunately Endgame is all that we get. Go ahead and watch it - it is worth the effort.

Director Pete Travis, who has attempted to make a name for himself by his "just sort of experimental" approach to filmmaking, is at it again with Paula Milne's Endgame. This time the objective appears to have been to shoot a full dramatization of actual events in a style much like those featured in PBS documentaries and bill it as a film suited for action-seekers. And with that in mind, the film's title is perhaps more a warning to audiences than anything else. Basically, if you're the kind of person who enjoys attending random chess tournaments featuring professional players whose names you probably forget before checkmate, there is a slight chance that you'll enjoy this film. Otherwise, you'll likely find yourself impatiently waiting for the end of the game. Somewhat to its credit, the portrayal seemed to be historically accurate, perhaps for the sole consideration that nothing incredibly unbelievable was depicted. The film, loaded with dialogue that would seem to neither advance the plot nor develop its characters, was overall excruciatingly slow-paced, offering audiences very little reward for all the wait. And to finally cement one's overwhelming sense of disappointment, Endgame's conclusion is regrettably just as anticlimactic as the film's most intense scenes (such as the "car chase" which is about as exhilarating as overtaking a farmer on a rural road). Though some themes seem to hint at the filmmakers' desire to offer new approach to the medium, this film was nothing groundbreaking.

Well-scripted and cast this made-for-TV drama would have to work hard to be ineffective. William Hurt, as a liberal Afrikaner university professor Esterhuyse bosses the drama. Thrown inbetween the ANC and Botha's implacable government as a way of coaxing talks into life he also has to withstand the insidious advances of insiders with other agendas. Chiwetel Ejiofor's Mbeki is an earnest character here but for reasons either of performance or historical reproduction he seems strangely marginal. Much more impressive is the (scarily similar) Mandela of Clarke Peters, played as a graceful man two steps ahead of whatever game he's introduced to.There's a host of other cameos - I particularly liked Timothy West's Botha - which fill out the story. It's a competent production, albeit fighting an occasionally losing battle with period detail in central London (21st century buses and entryphone systems in 1985). Somerset looks beautiful too. It can be a bit cursory with the dangers a bit - the stakes that the 'players' face - but there's a lot to cram in. Above all one gets the sense of men trying to resolve things with a decorousness that must be the example for the ensuing national democracy. Stirring stuff. 7/10