King Leopold's Ghost
Seen it?2006 | 102 min | Documentary, History
Weeknight Watchearly ratingWhy it’s a Weeknight Watch
With soft box office and little lasting buzz, it's a mixed bag. Fine if it's on; don't plan your night around it.
Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.Is it for you?
- Who'll love it
- Aimed squarely at anyone who likes knowing it really happened and readers who like to compare the book and the screen version. Based on real events, so expect to go down a research rabbit hole afterwards. Liked The Look of Silence or Flags of Our Fathers? This is a good next one. Adapted from a book, so readers can compare notes.
- The mood
- Eye-opening.
- The pace
- Moves through the story clearly, at 1 hr 42 min.
- What might put you off
- Skip it if you want made-up drama tonight.
The modern history of the Congo, the heart of Africa, is a terrifying tale of appalling brutality: how the greedy and incredibly ruthless King Leopold II of Belgium (1935-1909) turned a vast country into his private estate (1885-1908) and how he plundered the land and raped the bodies and souls of its defenceless inhabitants, causing countless victims; and what exactly is the true impact of this often forgotten story of crime and horror today.
How it earned its rating
- CriticsNot counted
Not enough reviews on record yet
- AudiencesNot counted
Not measured yet: not enough ratings
- AwardsNot counted
No major awards or nominations
- Reach & staying powerBelow par
Streaming release that reached a small audience so far; still draws a steady audience long after release
- Buzz & cultural impactBelow par
About 70K people sought it out in the past year
Trailer
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Flags of Our Fathers
Saturday SpecialAnother true-story historical drama, and a Saturday Special.
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Cast & crew
Directed by Pippa Scott, Oreet Rees
- Don CheadleNarrator (voice)
- Ciaran ReillyRoger Casement (voice)
- Alfre WoodardIlanga (voice)
- Philippe Bergeron
- James Cromwell
- Frank McCourt
- Adam HochschildSelf
- Tom WrightAdditional Narration
- Annick DeVilleSelf
- Jean-Pierre BembaSelf