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General Idi Amin Dada seized power in Uganda in 1971, and he ruled his country for 8 years. During his reign, Idi Amin Dada behaved as any mentally unbalanced dictator would--like a madman. Hundreds of thousands of Ugandans disappeared, most likely the victims of mass slaughters. The country plunged into economic crisis because Idi Amin Dada decided to wage an "economic war" against Asians and other non-natives who had settled in Uganda. There were reports that the general indulged in cannibalism, too.
In 1974, Barbet Schroeder (known in the United States for "Reversal of Fortune" and "Single White Female") went to Uganda to make a documentary about this odd man. In one-on-one situations, Idi Amin Dada appears to be charming, caring personality with many varied interests. However, "General Idi Amin Dada" (sometimes subtitled as "A Self Portrait") also captures the dictator at his tyrannical best (or worst, depending on your point of view). During a cabinet meeting and a conference with Uganda´s leading doctors, Idi Amin Dada admonishes his men not to behave like women and to avoid becoming drunks. Then he starts talking about how Uganda has more women in managerial positions (running hotels) than any other African nation, and he even admits that he himself drinks a too much sometimes.
Since the documentary was made with Idi Amin Dada´s cooperation, the film doesn´t really capture moments of the director´s true brutality. We don´t get to see the mass graves of massacred Ugandans, nor do we see the General personally doing anything "weird". Still, Idi Amin Dada loves to gab, and he drones on and on about how he wants to combine the best elements of both capitalism and communism into a new economic system, about how he has plans to bring peace to the Middle East by using paratroopers to invade the Golan Heights, and about how he wants to tell the "truth, completely" (his two favorite words, repeated ad nauseum throughout the movie).
The film uncovers some of Idi Amin Dada´s more innocuous habits, such as his delight for playing the accordion, his incessant use of telegrams to communicate with other world leaders, and his love for enacting war scenarios meant to drive the Israelis out of the Middle East.
Although I know a few things about Idi Amin Dada´s exploits, I didn´t really have a grasp about him as a person. Barbet Schroeder´s fascinating film highlights the larger-than-life-personality of this gross, atrocious, and unintentionally humorous monster. I mean, I could not help but to laugh out loud when the good general discusses grandiose plans to revive the tourism industry in Uganda. Since he drove all foreigners out of the country, why would he want to bring them back to Uganda? He also talks about giving his countrymen freedom and about how the peoples of other African countries petitioned him to bring freedom to their nations as well. Yet, he despises capitalists and the concept of free-trade.
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[release]10337[/release]