The idealist William Wilberforce maneuvers his way through Parliament, endeavoring to end the British transatlantic slave trade.The idealist William Wilberforce maneuvers his way through Parliament, endeavoring to end the British transatlantic slave trade.The idealist William Wilberforce maneuvers his way through Parliament, endeavoring to end the British transatlantic slave trade.
- Awards
- 3 wins & 6 nominations
Ciarán Hinds
- Lord Tarleton
- (as Ciaran Hinds)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe scene where William Wilberforce (Ioan Gruffudd) sings "Amazing Grace" at the card house was sung by Gruffudd at that moment. In the last several takes, a playback was used, but it is Ioan singing. Director Michael Apted had no idea whether or not Gruffudd could actually sing. Little did he know, Ioan is an accomplished soloist and choir singer. With a little practice, Ioan performed for the first time on-set while the cameras were rolling. All much to the surprise of the cast, crew, and director.
- GoofsAt several points in the movie we see handshakes, notably Wilberforce with other MPs. This is entirely in period; there are references to shaking hands at least as far back as Shakespeare. It was unusual in other European countries (the young Wilberforce and Pitt amused the French by doing this when visiting the court of Louis XVI in 1783) but not in Britain.
- Quotes
John Newton: Although my memory's fading, I remember two things very clearly. I'm a great sinner and Christ is a great Savior.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Tavis Smiley: Episode dated 23 January 2007 (2007)
Featured review
Moving period drama
I was well impressed with Amazing Grace; the period was superbly captured, and the interplay of the main action (the fight of William Wilberforce to abolish British slavery) with the other great events of his time (the American and French revolutions) was well presented. The film stirs the emotions but informs the mind. Ioan Gruffudd as Wilberforce is believable and depicts the tenacious Yorkshire MP with both his bodily weakness and great spirit well. Albert Finney as John Newton renders a moving portrayal of the ex-slave trader turned evangelical minister who influences Wilberforce's decision to remain in politics rather than entering the ministry of the church. Benedict Cumberbatch gives a strong representation of William Pitt, and the overall impression of the film is one whose history has been well researched. Well worth a viewing.
helpful•8514
- colin-509
- Feb 5, 2007
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Ân Điển Diệu Kỳ
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $21,250,683
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $4,305,000
- Feb 25, 2007
- Gross worldwide
- $32,120,360
- Runtime1 hour 58 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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