Corrected entry: The central character, the enslaved Cinque, was not seized in Africa and then immediately exported to Cuba out of the slave depot at Lomboko. Cinque was enslaved a few years earlier by black Africans (a common practice) and eventually sold to slave traders.
Twotall
27th Aug 2001
Amistad (1997)
27th Aug 2001
Amistad (1997)
Corrected entry: When the prosecution is questioning the British naval officer there is an orange, dusk coloured sky behind him, showing through the window. But when Cinque stands up it is broad daylight.
Correction: The shots that show the courtroom in orange light is seen through the eyes of Cinque, and is done deliberately to show how strange, confusing and scary the whole experience is to him. In addition to the light, voices occasionally fade away and rapid cuts are made between characters, with intermittent close-ups of Cinque's eyes and the sweat pouring down his brow. When he stands up to plea for freedom, the film goes back to showing the court room as it really is, in normal daylight.
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Correction: Even if this is correct (online biographies seem to disagree), Cinque's past history is only shown in short cuts and small portions during a flashback. The film makers merely chose to omit the parts that had no bearing on the story of the Amistad uprising, including Cinque's time in captivity while still in Africa.
Twotall