FILM OF THE WEEK

A United Kingdom (Cert 12, 111 mins, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, Drama/Romance, available from March 20 on Amazon Video/BT TV Store/iTunes/Sky Store/TalkTalk TV Store and other download and streaming services, also available from March 20 on DVD £19.99/Blu-ray £27.99)

Starring: David Oyelowo, Rosamund Pike, Vusi Kunene, Abena Ayivor, Terry Pheto, Jack Davenport.

Seretse Khama (David Oyelowo), heir apparent to the nation of Bechuanaland (now Botswana), is studying law in 1947 London before returning home to lead his people. He has been prepared for this role by his proud uncle Tshekedi (Vusi Kunene) and a council, which kowtows to the British. At a dance organised by the London Missionary Society, Seretse falls in love with typist Ruth Williams (Rosamund Pike). Their romance enrages Alistair Canning (Jack Davenport), the British government's representative in southern Africa. "If you choose to marry the leader of an African nation, you will be responsible for the downfall of the British empire," he coldly informs Ruth. Unperturbed, the couple marries and Ruth accompanies Seretse to Bechuanaland, where she faces hostility from uncle Tshekedi, aunt Ella (Abena Ayivor) and Seretse's sister Naledi (Terry Pheto). A United Kingdom is a handsome and deeply moving love story, which dramatises a shameful episode of bigotry during the post-war decline of the British Empire. Scriptwriter Guy Hibbert captures the terrible injustice and anguish of the period with aplomb. He gifts Oyelowo several barn-storming speeches against apartheid and intolerance, including a pivotal meeting of tribal chiefs, where the prince tearfully tells the assembled throng, "I love my people, I love this land - but I love my wife." His unswerving belief that love conquers all, at a time when the world still bears the scars of bitter conflict, galvanises every beautifully composed frame and plucks the (heart)strings of composer Patrick Doyle's lush orchestrations.

Rating: ****