Synopsis
In 1839, the revolt of Mende captives aboard a Spanish owned ship causes a major controversy in the United States when the ship is captured off the coast of Long Island. The courts must decide whether the Mende are slaves or legally free.
Scores
Overall Score
79.9
Popularity Percentile (Year)
79.1%
Box Office Percentile (Year)
82.5%
Review Aggregate
77.1
Critic Consensus
Critic reception is largely positive, with 79% of 62 logged reviews marked Fresh. Across reviews, critics repeatedly emphasize emotional, historical, political. Most critics frame the film as an effective delivery of its core style and intent.
emotionalhistoricalpoliticalvisually strikingcoming of agegrittyrealisticcharacter-driven
Cast
| Cast | Year | Reported Salary | Inflation Adjusted | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morgan Freeman | 1997 | $2,024,000 | $3,957,000 | (est) |
| Nigel Hawthorne | 1997 | $1,246,000 | $2,436,000 | (est) |
| Anthony Hopkins | 1997 | $938,000 | $1,834,000 | (est) |
| Djimon Hounsou | 1997 | $767,000 | $1,499,000 | (est) |
| Matthew McConaughey | 1997 | $656,000 | $1,282,000 | (est) |
| David Paymer | 1997 | $578,000 | $1,129,000 | (est) |
| Pete Postlethwaite | 1997 | $518,000 | $1,013,000 | (est) |
| Stellan Skarsgård | 1997 | $472,000 | $923,000 | (est) |
Aggregated Reviews
Rotten Tomatoes critic score78.0
RT critic review count69
Rotten Tomatoes audience score79.0
RT audience rating count50,000
IMDb rating7.3
IMDb votes85,993
Box Office ?
| Category | Year | Reported | Inflation Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic | 1997 | $44,229,440 | $86,447,200 |
| International | 1997 | N/A | N/A |
| Worldwide | 1997 | $44,229,440 | $86,447,200 |
Earnings / Profitability
| Category | Year | Reported | Inflation Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenues | |||
| Theatrical Net Revenue | 1997 | $22,114,720 | $43,223,600 |
| Digital Rentals ? | 1997 | N/A | N/A |
| Digital Purchases ? | 1997 | N/A | N/A |
| Physical Rentals ? | 1997 | $30,486,000 | $59,585,411 |
| Physical Purchases ? | 1997 | $40,732,000 | $79,611,393 |
| TV & Streaming Revenue | 1997 | $11,057,360 | $21,611,800 |
| Total Revenues | 1997 | $104,390,080 | $204,032,204 |
| Expenses | |||
| Budget ? | 1997 | $36,000,000 | $70,362,618 |
| Print & Advertising (P&A) ? | 1997 | $11,852,000 (est) | $23,164,938 (est) |
| Participations | 1997 | $8,351,000 | $16,322,173 |
| Residuals ? | 1997 | $5,792,000 | $11,320,563 |
| Interest & Overhead | 1997 | $6,120,000 | $11,961,645 |
| Total Expenses | 1997 | $68,115,000 | $133,131,937 |
| Movie Net Profit or Loss | 1997 | $36,275,080 | $70,900,267 |
Similar Movies
| Poster | Movie | Year | Match | Overall | Est. Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Schindler's List | 1993 | Shared genres: 4 | 97.8 | $98,679,301 |
 | The King's Speech | 2010 | Shared genres: 4 | 96.2 | $184,939,089 |
 | Argo | 2012 | Shared genres: 4 | 94.9 | $60,917,890 |
 | Hacksaw Ridge | 2016 | Shared genres: 4 | 94.4 | $22,896,822 |
 | Lincoln | 2012 | Shared genres: 4 | 91.7 | $64,549,409 |