amistad film

Amistad film

In 1839, on a stormy night off the coast of Cuba, fifty-three Africans were held captive on the slave ship ‘La Amistad’. Cinque breaks free of their shackles, arm themselves and take control of the ship reclaiming their freedom. They have one goal: to return to Africa.
The Africans rely on the two surviving members of the crew to navigate them home. However, after two months the ‘Amistad’ is captured off the coast of Connecticut by an American ship.
The Africans are put on trial for the murder of the crew but the case becomes the symbol of a nation divided.
The Africans are protected by Theodore Joadson, Lewis Tappan and a young real estate attorney Roger Baldwin. Seeking reelection, pro-slavery President Martin Van Buren is willing to sacrifice the Africans to appease the South as well as Isabella II, Queen of Spain. However, Van Buren’s will is challenged by former President John Quincy Adams who comes out of retirement to fight the Africans’ cau...