Whenever the topic of the abolition of slavery comes up, I naturally think of it in terms of the United States. I think of people like Harriet Tubman, John Brown, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Frederick Douglass, and others who will forever have their names attached to that movement.
What I’ve somehow never realized until recently, however, was that abolitionism was a hot-button political topic in Britain well before the issue really took widespread hold in America. In fact, the slave trade was abolished in the British Empire in 1807 — long before Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation — largely due to the tireless efforts of an MP named William Wilberforce.
Wilberforce’s story is the focal point of the 2006 film Amazing Grace.
Plot summary (with possible spoilers): The film opens with a very ill William Wilberforce (played by Ioan Gruffudd) journeying to Bath for a restorative holiday with Henry Thornton (Nicholas Farrell). No real information is given about Wilberforce’s illness, but it seems that his condition has been brought about by overwork.
While at Bath, Thornton and his wife Marianne (Sylvestra Le Touzel) set Wilberforce, a lifelong bachelor, up with a young woman named Barbara Spooner (Romola Garai). Though Wilberforce at first resists the Thorntons’ efforts at matchmaking, he soon finds that Barbara is a very interesting, intelligent, and articulate woman. They would later marry.
The narrative then flashes back to 1782 as Wilberforce starts telling Barbara about his early political career. He was a popular member of Parliament, thanks to his charisma and quick wit, but never really had a good cause to stand behind.
That all changed when Wilberforce sat down to dinner with a group of abolitionists led by Thomas Clarkson (Rufus Sewell) and others. They convince Wilberforce to start working to ban the slave trade throughout the British Empire — a very risky move on Wilberforce’s part since many members of Parliament had significant economic interests tied up in the trade.
Wilberforce consults his friend John Newton (Albert Finney), a clergyman and former slave ship captain, about the crusade he is about to undertake. Newton, who became famous for penning the hymn “Amazing Grace”, described the horrors that slaves undergo during the voyage from Africa to other parts of the world. Newton himself is haunted by the images to this very day, and his story serves to strengthen Wilberforce’s resolve.
The rest of the film then deals with all the political wrangling that it took to pass the Slave Trade Act of 1807 through Parliament. All told, Wilberforce spent 25 years of his life working to get the act passed.
My Reaction: At first, I was thrown off a bit by the time shifts at the beginning of Amazing Grace. Wilberforce doesn’t look distinctly different in the flashbacks, so I had trouble keeping the timeline straight. But once I figured out what was going on, I was able to settle in and enjoy this film.
For the most part, I thought Amazing Grace was a great story. It’s absolutely incredible what determined individuals can accomplish in this world, and Wilberforce is an excellent example of this phenomenon. I find it hard to believe that he stuck with the abolitionist movement for 25 years, particularly at a time when it was political suicide to do so. How different the world would be today if it weren’t for men like William Wilberforce!
I thought Ioan Gruffudd was very good in the lead role. He made Wilberforce charismatic and sympathetic, and was successful in commanding my attention throughout the film. I also thought Benedict Cumberbatch did a nice job playing William Pitt, the youngest Prime Minister in British history and close friend of Wilberforce, whose behind the scenes support and encouragement helped keep Wilberforce going.
There were some slow spots in this movie where the plot seemed to drag on a little bit. I think this was mostly due to the fact that I didn’t recognize any of the names of the other people involved in the Slave Trade Act, so I wasn’t always able to understand the significance of certain conversations or scenes. That’s not the fault of the filmmakers, though, so I can hardly blame them for not spelling everything out!
Overall, I thought Amazing Grace was an interesting and inspiring film. I wanted to learn more about William Wilberforce after seeing it, which speaks volumes about the powerful subject matter. I give it 7.0 stars out of 10.