JOHANNESBURG (AP) — A movie
depicting the life of Nelson Mandela has become South Africa's highest grossing
picture after its opening last week, its producers said Thursday.
The film, "Long Walk to
Freedom," has already earned $427,000 (Rand 4.4 million), according to Videovision
Entertainment.
The movie stars British actor
Idris Elba as Mandela, the 95-year-old liberation struggle icon. It's based on
his autobiography with the same title.
The British-South African
co-production opened just over a week ago in South Africa, followed by a
limited engagement in New York and Los Angeles.
"I visited a few cinemas over
the weekend and experienced the emotional response to the film with audiences
leaving the cinemas completely satisfied," said producer Anant Singh.
"For me as a filmmaker, this is really fulfilling."
The movie traces Mandela's life
from his childhood in a remote rural part of South Africa, through his years
struggling against apartheid, to his 27 years imprisonment and his election as
the country's first black president in 1994.
The release comes amid renewed
concern about Mandela's health. Family members told the South African
Broadcasting Corporation this week that he is continuing to put up a courageous
fight from his "death bed."
"He is still with us although
he is not doing well in bed," his grandson, Ndaba Mandela, told the
interviewer.
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