Narrated by a series of experts and actors who include don cheadle, james. Based on adam hochschilds 1998 historical novel of the same name, the film traces the brutal legacy of king leopold ii of belgium. Ben affleck to direct historical congo plunder tale king leopolds. Ben affleck directing, producing drama king leopolds.
In the late 19th century, king leopold ii of belgium decided that he wanted to make belgium a major empire by acquiring territory in africa. The movie, directed by pippa scott and oreet rees, includes. Ben affleck will direct king leopolds ghost, a factbased. The king leopolds ghost community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quizzes written by community members like you. Ben affleck is leaving gotham city and heading to the congo. Beginning with king leopold ii of belgiums avaricious rape of the country and tracing the impact of this oftenforgotten crime through to the modern day, this immensely shocking doc is a heart. Affleck is producing through his pearl street films banner alongside.
Ben affleck will direct and produce the historical drama king leopolds ghost, set in the early 20th century in the congo. Although king leopolds ghost dwells perhaps too long on the viciousness. This 60page guide for king leopolds ghost by adam hochschild includes detailed chapter summaries and analysis covering 19 chapters, as well as several more indepth sections of expertwritten literary analysis. Pippa scott and oreet rees document the exploitation of the congo by belgium s king leopold ii. Hochschild talked about his book king leopold s ghost. A story of greed, terror and heroism in colonial africa 1998 is a bestselling popular history book by adam hochschild that explores the. Beginning with king leopold ii of belgiums avaricious rape of the country and tracing the impact of this horrifying and oftenforgotten crime through to the modern day, this immensely shocking doc is a heartrending tale of a rich country destroyed by rapacious hands. Affleck will produce via his pearl street films banner, alongside martin. A story of greed, terror, and heroism in colonial africa, published by houghton mifflin company.
Beginning with king leopold ii of belgiums avaricious rape of the country and tracing the impact of this horrifying and often. Watch king leopolds ghost now on your favorite device. A story of greed, terror, and heroism in colonial africa, the documentary centers on the atrocities that are still happening everyday in the congo as a result of king leopold ii of belgiums rule and the development of one of the worlds first based on adam hochschilds critically. Watch king leopolds ghost online vimeo on demand on vimeo. Yet stanley and leopold managed to hide their exploitation and the disturbingly sadistic methods they used to enforce slave labour behind a stagemanaged smokescreen of apparent innocence. Ben affleck will direct king leopolds ghost, a factbased drama about the plunder of the congo by belgiums king leopold ii in the late.
Well refund your credit card or we can credit your fandango account to use for another movie. As adam hochschild, author of the novel king leopolds ghost points out, leopold was a master of spin control. The modern history of the congo is a terrifying story of appalling brutality. Based on adam hochschilds critically acclaimed international bestseller king leopolds ghost. Ben affleck argo, the town is getting behind the camera for a new movie called king leopolds ghost, a true story of rebellion against genocide in the congo in the late 1800s. The unbelievable story of congos brutal history with its belgian colonisers. The batman star, 47, is set to direct and produce king leopolds ghost, a factual drama about belgiums king leopold ii.
King leopold s ghost on dvd january 27, 2009 starring don cheadle, james cromwell, alfre woodard. Beginning with king leopold ii of belgiums avaricious rape of the. Released january 16th, 2006, king leopold s ghost stars don cheadle the pg movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 47 min, and received a score of 71 out of 100 on metacritic, which compiled. Ben affleck directing historical drama king leopolds ghost. The right hands, i counted 81 in all, william henry sheppard reported, after seeing the hands of africans that. Ben affleck to direct and produce historical drama king leopolds ghost. Read the king leopolds ghost plot and find out who is in the cast and crew at.
The story in king leopold s ghost is a powerful one colonization taken to its extreme but the book is rendered mediocre by the authors trite moralizing, lack of historical rigor, and tiresome reliance on depicting every actor with either a halo or horns. King leopolds ghost study guide from litcharts the. The story is based on the adam hochschild book king leopolds ghost. Europes genocidal adventures in africa receive a passionate reckoning in the ambitious documentary king leopolds ghost. A story of greed, terror, and heroism in colonial africa, the documentary centers on the atrocities that are still happening everyday in the congo as a result of king leopold ii of belgiums rule and the development of one of the worlds first human rights movements. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides for challenging works of literature. Ben affleck to direct king leopolds ghost based on true. This documentary focuses on belgiums king leopold ii, who cruelly ravaged the congo in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
We hope the following questions will stimulate discussion for reading groups and provide a deeper understanding of king leopolds ghost. Ben affleck will direct king leopolds ghost, a true. Ben affleck directing, producing drama king leopolds ghost. One community, headed by scott budnick, is a film, television, and new. Enjoy a rich lineup of tv shows and movies included with your prime membership. With philippe bergeron, don cheadle, james cromwell, frank mccourt.
Leopold was an intelligent and ruthless man who wasnt afraid to lie or kill in order to expand belgiums power. Leopold ii, king of the belgians, privately controlled and owned the congo free state from 1885 to 1908. It s also worth mentioning barbara kingsolver s novel the poisonwood bible 1998, which takes place in the congo, fifty years after the events of king leopolds ghost and alludes to many of king leopolds human rights atrocities. A documentary about the exploitation of the congo by king leopold ii of belgium. A documentary about the exploitation of the congo by king leopold. The film king leopolds ghost is truly a brilliant documentary that offers and intriguing insight into the grim colonial legacy that still haunts the congo today. Once photographs were made public, leopolds charade of spreading christianity in the heart of darkness was exposed as a greedy ruse, and the king. Some belgian historians and politicians disagree with such comparisons, so the upcoming movie is bound to fuel some debate. Adam hochschilds king leopolds ghost 1998 was published by mariner books.
As adam hochschild, author of the novel king leopold s ghost points out, leopold was a master of spin control. Hochschild, a respected historian, chronicles the horrifying and forgotten crimes of the 1800s in belgium. S ome time ago i wrote a book about one of the great crimes of the last 150 years. Ben affleck to direct congo movie, king leopolds ghost. Beginning with king leopold ii of belgiums avaricious rape of the country and tracing the impact. Although much of the material in king leopold s ghost is secondhand the author has drawn heavily from jules marchals scholarly fourvolume history of turnofthecentury congo and from the scramble for africa, thomas pakenhams wideranging 1991 study of the european conquest of the continent hochschild has stitched it together into. King leopolds ghost is based on the exploits of leopold ii of belgium, who led a savage plunder in the congo that helped to make him into one of the richest men in the world. Whats the story set at a moment when european countries are racing to find ways to carve up the natural resources of africa, belgiums king leopold ii becomes the worlds richest man with billions stashed in secret bank accounts by gaining private ownership of the congo free state, and inserts a mercenary army to cruelly plunder rubber and ivory. This detailed literature summary also contains topics for discussion and a free quiz on king leopold s ghost by adam hochschild. Working from adam hochschilds bestselling history of the. King leopolds ghost summary from litcharts the creators.