Plot for Peace (FILM REVIEW)
Plot for Peace
Film Review
by Kam Williams
Revisionist History Chronicles Frenchman’s Secret Role in Toppling
Apartheid
In 2009, I
reviewed a movie called Endgame, a political potboiler which divulged, for the
first time, the pivotal role a British professor
named Will Esterhuyse played in the end of Apartheid. I remember feeling a
little skeptical about the veracity of the alleged well-kept secret.
But here
it is five years later, and we now have a Plot for Peace, a documentary staking
a similar claim on behalf of another supposed critical figure who also
ostensibly operated under the radar. This picture purportedly recounts how Jean-Yves
Ollivier, a French businessman surreptitiously referred to as “Monsieur
Jacques” in classified correspondence, orchestrated the dismantling of South
Africa’s racist regime as well as the release of Nelson Mandela from prison.
Granted, Mr. Ollivier
has many luminaries lining up to testify on his behalf, including Winnie
Mandela, who says, “He never said one word about his contribution.” Then,
there’s attorney and African National Congress activist Mathews Phosa who
points out that Jean-Yves “wouldn’t have received a medal from Mandela if he
hadn’t played a role.” Curiously, he’s the only person to be so honored by both
the new and previous presidents.
What interested Ollivier
in South Africa?
He explains that he was a young expatriate living in Algeria during that nation’s
independence movement. So, he saw the outcome as inevitable when civil war erupted
in South Africa despite efforts
of the United States
and other Western countries to delay the inevitable by advocating the dubious “policy
of constructive engagement.”
My only complaint
about “Johnny Come Lately” productions like this and Endgame is the way in
which they subtly minimize the contributions made by the revolutionaries who
put their lives on the line in a very bloody, freedom struggle. These versions of
revisionist history tend to marginalize such sacrifices while suggesting that
the true hero was a lone wolf in a suit safely negotiating a resolution of the
conflict from half a world away.
Regardless, the grassroots’ rallying
cry remained, “Amandla!”
Very Good
(2.5 stars)
Unrated
In English, French, Portuguese, Afrikaans and Spanish with
subtitles
Running time: 84 minutes
Distributor: Indelible
Media
To see a trailer for Plot
for Peace, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A7EJUg1dSY
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