''Amistad'' is a 1997 American

historical drama A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romance film, romances, adventure f ...

film directed by

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

, based on the events in 1839 aboard the Spanish slave ship ''

La Amistad ''La Amistad'' (; Spanish for ''Friendship'') was a 19th-century two- masted schooner, owned by a Spaniard colonizing Cuba. It became renowned in July 1839 for a slave revolt by Mende captives, who had been captured and sold to European slave ...

'', during which Mende tribesmen abducted for the slave trade managed to gain control of their captors' ship off the coast of

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, and the international

legal battle - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil acti ...

that followed their capture by the ''

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

'', a U.S. revenue cutter. The case was ultimately resolved by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1841.

Morgan Freeman Morgan Freeman (born June 1, 1937) is an American actor, director, and narrator. He is known for his distinctive deep voice and various roles in a wide variety of film genres. Throughout his career spanning over five decades, he has received ...

Anthony Hopkins Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins (born 31 December 1937) is a Welsh actor, director, and producer. One of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actors, he is known for his performances on the screen and stage. Hopkins has received many accolad ...

Djimon Hounsou Djimon Gaston Hounsou (; ; born April 24, 1964) is a Beninese-American actor and model. He began his career appearing in music videos. He made his film debut in '' Without You I'm Nothing'' (1990) and earned widespread recognition for his role as ...

, and

Matthew McConaughey Matthew David McConaughey ( ; born November 4, 1969) is an American actor. He had his breakout role with a supporting performance in the coming-of-age comedy '' Dazed and Confused'' (1993). After a number of supporting roles, his first succes ...

had starring roles.

David Franzoni David Harold Franzoni (born March 4, 1947) is an American screenwriter and film producer. He conceived the story for, co-wrote and co-produced the 2000 film '' Gladiator'', for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Sc ...

's screenplay was based on the 1987 book '' Mutiny on the Amistad: The Saga of a Slave Revolt and Its Impact on American Abolition, Law, and Diplomacy'', by professor Howard Jones. The film received largely positive critical reviews and grossed over $58 million worldwide.

Plot

The

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

''La Amistad'' is transporting black slaves off the coast of the

Spanish colony of Cuba Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

in 1839. A captive, Cinqué, leads an uprising against the crew, most of whom are killed. Two navigators, Pedro Montez and Jose Ruiz, are spared on condition they help sail the ship to Africa. The Spaniards predictably betray them and instead sail into US waters, where the ship is stopped by the U.S. revenue cutter ''

'', and the mutineers are arrested. A complicated legal battle ensues over the slaves. United States Attorney William S. Holabird brings charges of piracy and murder against them, but they are simultaneously claimed as property both by Montez & Ruiz, and as salvage by two officers from the ''Washington''. The Spanish government of Queen Isabella intervenes in support of Montez & Ruiz, under the

Treaty of San Lorenzo Pinckney's Treaty, also known as the Treaty of San Lorenzo or the Treaty of Madrid, was signed on October 27, 1795 by the United States and Spain. It defined the border between the United States and Spanish Florida, and guaranteed the United S ...

. To avoid a diplomatic incident, President

Martin Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party (Uni ...

directs his Secretary of State John Forsyth to support the Spanish claim. Meanwhile, abolitionist

Lewis Tappan Lewis Tappan (May 23, 1788 – June 21, 1873) was a New York abolitionist who worked to achieve freedom for the enslaved Africans aboard the '' Amistad''. Tappan was also among the founders of the American Missionary Association in 1846, which ...

and his black associate Theodore Joadson (a former slave), resolve to help the captives. They approach the brilliant lawyer, former US president and serving

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, and diarist who served as the sixth president of the United States, from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States S ...

, but he is reluctant to get involved. They instead hire the young and eccentric attorney

Roger Sherman Baldwin Roger Sherman Baldwin (January 4, 1793 – February 19, 1863) was an American politician who served as the 32nd Governor of Connecticut from 1844 to 1846 and a United States senator from 1847 to 1851. As a lawyer, his career was most notable ...

. Baldwin, unable to converse directly with his clients due to the language barrier, suspects the slaves are not Cubans but Africans who have been kidnapped and transported illegally as part of the banned

transatlantic slave trade The Atlantic slave trade, transatlantic slave trade, or Euro-American slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of enslaved African people, mainly to the Americas. The slave trade regularly used the triangular trade route and i ...

. He and Joadson search ''La Amistad'' and find documents which prove the captives were kidnapped from

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...

and transported across the Atlantic aboard the Portuguese slave ship ''

Tecora ''Tecora'' was a Portuguese slave ship of the early 19th century. The brig was built especially for the slave trade although the transport across the Atlantic of human beings as slaves had already been outlawed by several nations in international ...

'' before being transferred to ''La Amistad'' in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

. The judge is impressed and signals his intention to dismiss the US and Spanish governments' case and release the captives. To preclude this possibility, Van Buren replaces the judge with a younger man, Coglin, whom he believes will be easier to manipulate. Joadson seeks advice from Adams, who tells him that court cases are usually won by the side with the best 'story'. Baldwin and Joadson recruit

freedman A freedman or freedwoman is a formerly enslaved person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, enslaved people were freed by manumission (granted freedom by their captor-owners), emancipation (granted freedom a ...

James Covey James Benjamin Covey (''né'' Kaweli; c. 1825 – 12 October 1850) was a sailor, remembered today chiefly for his role as Language interpretation, interpreter during the legal proceedings in the Federal judiciary of the United States, United Stat ...

as a translator, enabling Cinqué to testify directly before the court. He describes how he was kidnapped from his home, and the horrors of the

Middle Passage The Middle Passage was the stage of the Atlantic slave trade in which millions of enslaved Africans were transported to the Americas as part of the triangular slave trade. Ships departed Europe for African markets with manufactured goods (first ...

. Baldwin calls Captain Fitzgerald of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

West Africa Squadron The West Africa Squadron, also known as the Preventative Squadron, was a squadron of the British Royal Navy whose goal was to suppress the Atlantic slave trade by patrolling the coast of West Africa. Formed in 1808 after the British Parliame ...

to corroborate Cinqué's testimony. He speculates that the captives were taken aboard the ''Tecora'' at the notorious

slave fort A slave fort or slave castle was a fortification designed to provide an area in which enslaved victims could be imprisoned as well as constituting a significant defendable location in the event of an outside attack. A slave fort was a militarised fa ...

Lomboko Lomboko was a slave factory in what is today Sierra Leone, controlled by the infamous Spanish slave trader Pedro Blanco (slave trader), Pedro Blanco. It consisted of several large depots or barracoons for slaves brought from the interior, as well ...

. Under cross-examination, Fitzgerald admits there is no direct evidence of Lomboko's existence. As tension rises, Cinqué abruptly stands and demands, "Give us, us free!". Moved by Cinqué's emotion, Judge Coglin rules that the Africans are to be released, and that Montez & Ruiz are to be arrested and charged with illegal slave-trading. Under pressure from Senator John C. Calhoun of

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, who represents the slave-holding interests of the

American South The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

, Van Buren appeals the case to the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. Baldwin and Joadson visit Adams again, and after meeting Cinqué he agrees to represent the Africans before the Supreme Court. Adams' impassioned and eloquent speech convinces the court to confirm the judgement and release the Africans. Lomboko is stormed by

Royal Marines The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...

under the command of Captain Fitzgerald, and the slaves held there are freed. Fitzgerald orders the ship's cannon to destroy the fortress, and dictates a sardonic letter to Forsyth saying that he was correct — the infamous slave fort does not now exist. Van Buren is discredited by his failure to prevent the release of the Africans, and loses the 1840 election to

William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841, and had the shortest pres ...

. The Spanish government continues to press its claim for compensation up until the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. Cinqué returns to Africa, but is unable to reunite with his family due to civil war in Sierra Leone.

Cast

as Sengbe Pieh / Joseph Cinqué *

as Theodore Joadson *

Nigel Hawthorne Sir Nigel Barnard Hawthorne (5 April 1929 – 26 December 2001) was an English actor. He is most known for his stage acting and his portrayal of Sir Humphrey Appleby, the permanent secretary in the 1980s sitcom '' Yes Minister'' and the Cabi ...

as President

David Paymer David Emmanuel Paymer (born August 30, 1954) is an American actor, comedian, and television director. He has been in films such as ''Mr. Saturday Night'', ''Quiz Show'', ''Searching for Bobby Fischer'', ''City Slickers'', ''Crazy People'', ''St ...

as Secretary of State John Forsyth *

Pete Postlethwaite Peter William Postlethwaite, (7 February 1946 – 2 January 2011) was an English character actor. After minor television appearances, including in '' The Professionals'', his first major success arose through the British autobiographical film ...

as William S. Holabird *

Stellan Skarsgård Stellan Skarsgård (, ; born 13 June 1951) is a Swedish actor. He is known for his collaborations with director Lars von Trier appearing in ''Breaking the Waves'' (1996), ''Dancer in the Dark'' (2000), ''Dogville'' (2007), ''Melancholia'' (2011 ...

Razaaq Adoti Razaaq Adoti (born 27 June 1973) is a British actor, producer and screenwriter. Early life Adoti was born in Forest Gate, London of Nigerian descent (Nigerian British). He landed his first professional screen role on the British television sh ...

as Yamba * Abu Bakaar Fofanah as Fala *

Anna Paquin Anna Hélène Paquin ( ; born 24 July 1982) is a New Zealand actress. Born in Winnipeg and raised in Wellington, Paquin made her acting debut portraying Flora McGrath in the romantic drama film ''The Piano'' (1993), for which she won the Aca ...

as Queen

Isabella II of Spain Isabella II ( es, Isabel II; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904), was Queen of Spain from 29 September 1833 until 30 September 1868. Shortly before her birth, the King Ferdinand VII of Spain issued a Pragmatic Sanction to ensure the successio ...

Tomas Milian Tomas Milian (born Tomás Quintín Rodríguez-Varona Milián Salinas de la Fé y Álvarez de la Campa; 3 March 1933 – 22 March 2017) was a Cuban-born actor and singer with American and Italian citizenship, known for the emotional intensity and ...

as Ángel Calderón de la Barca y Belgrano *

Chiwetel Ejiofor Chiwetel Umeadi Ejiofor ( ; born 10 July 1977) is a British actor. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a BAFTA Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, an NAACP Image Award, and nominations for an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy A ...

as Ensign

Derrick Ashong Derrick N. Ashong, also known as "DNA", (born 1975 in Accra, Ghana), is a producer, musician, and entrepreneur known for working with major figures including Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, and Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics. Background Born in ...

as Buakei *

Geno Silva Geno Silva (January 20, 1948 – May 9, 2020) was an American actor, best known for his role as The Skull, Alejandro Sosa's silent hitman in '' Scarface''. Silva also appeared in films such as '' 1941'', '' Tequila Sunrise'', '' The Lost World: ...

as Jose Ruiz *

John Ortiz John Ortiz (born May 23, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for his antagonist role as Arturo Braga in ''Fast & Furious'' (2009) and ''Fast & Furious 6'' (2013), and Clyde in ''Jack Goes Boating'' (2010), which earned him a nomination for t ...

as Pedro Montes * Kevin J. O'Connor as Missionary *

Ralph Brown Ralph William John Brown (born 18 June 1957) is an English actor and writer, known for playing Danny the drug dealer in ''Withnail and I'', the security guard Aaron (a.k.a. "85") in ''Alien 3'', DJ Bob Silver in ''The Boat That Rocked'' aka ' ...

as Lieutenant Thomas R. Gedney *

Darren E. Burrows Darren E. Burrows (born September 12, 1966) is an American actor and director. He is best known for playing Ed Chigliak in the television series '' Northern Exposure''. He also appeared in ''Cry-Baby'', '' Amistad'', '' Sunset Strip'', '' Forty ...

as Lieutenant Richard W. Meade *

Allan Rich Benjamin Norman Schultz (February 8, 1926 – August 22, 2020), known professionally as Allan Rich, was an American character actor. Career Rich began his acting career when he was nine years old. He appeared in the Broadway productions ''I'll ...

as Judge

Andrew T. Judson Andrew Thompson Judson (November 29, 1784 – March 17, 1853) was a United States representative from Connecticut and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. He also served in the Connect ...

Paul Guilfoyle Paul Vincent Guilfoyle () (born April 28, 1949) is an American television and film actor. He was a regular cast member of the CBS crime drama ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', on which he played Captain Jim Brass from 2000 to 2014. He retu ...

as Attorney *

Peter Firth Peter Macintosh Firth (born 27 October 1953) is an English actor. He is best known for his role as Sir Harry Pearce in the BBC One programme '' Spooks''; he is the only actor to have appeared in every episode of the programme's ten-series lif ...

as Captain Charles Fitzgerald *

Xander Berkeley Alexander Harper Berkeley (born December 16, 1955) is an American actor and voice actor. Since beginning his career in the early 1980s, he has appeared in over 200 film and television projects. His film roles include '' Terminator 2: Judgment Da ...

as Ledger Hammond *

Jeremy Northam Jeremy Philip Northam (born 1 December 1961) is an English actor and singer. After a number of television roles, he earned attention as Mr. Knightley in the 1996 film adaptation of Jane Austen's '' Emma''. He has appeared in the films ''An Ideal ...

as Judge Coglin *

Arliss Howard Leslie Richard "Arliss" Howard (born October 18, 1954) is an American actor, screenwriter, and film director. He is known for his roles in the films ''Full Metal Jacket'' (1987), '' Tequila Sunrise'' (1988), '' The Lost World: Jurassic Park'' (19 ...

as John C. Calhoun *

Austin Pendleton Austin Campbell Pendleton (born March 27, 1940) is an American actor, playwright, theatre director, and instructor. He is known as a prolific character actor on the stage and screen who has appeared in films including ''Catch-22'' (1970); '' W ...

as Professor

Josiah Willard Gibbs Sr. Josiah Willard Gibbs Sr. (30 April 1790 – 25 March 1861) was an American linguist and theologian, who served as professor of sacred literature at Yale University.Pedro Armendáriz Jr. Pedro Armendáriz Bohr (April 6, 1940 – December 26, 2011), better known by his stage name Pedro Armendáriz Jr., was a Mexican actor. Life and career Pedro Armendáriz Bohr was born in Mexico City to Mexican-American actor Pedro Armendáriz ...

as General

Baldomero Espartero Baldomero Fernández-Espartero y Álvarez de Toro (27 February 17938 January 1879) was a Spanish marshal and statesman. He served as the Regent of the Realm, three times as Prime Minister and briefly as President of the Congress of Deputies. ...

Retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice

Harry Blackmun Harry Andrew Blackmun (November 12, 1908 – March 4, 1999) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1970 to 1994. Appointed by Republican President Richard Nixon, Blac ...

also appears in the film as Justice

Joseph Story Joseph Story (September 18, 1779 – September 10, 1845) was an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, serving from 1812 to 1845. He is most remembered for his opinions in ''Martin v. Hunter's Lessee'' and ''United States ...

Casting

Cuba Gooding Jr. Cuba Mark Gooding Jr. (born January 2, 1968) is an American actor. He is the recipient of an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and an Emmy nomination. After his breakthrough role as Tre Styles in ''Boyz n the Hood'' (1991), he appear ...

was offered the role of Joseph Cinqué but turned it down and later regretted it.

Dustin Hoffman Dustin Lee Hoffman (born August 8, 1937) is an American actor and filmmaker. As one of the key actors in the formation of New Hollywood, Hoffman is known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and emotionally vulnerable characters. He is th ...

was offered a role but turned it down.

Soundtrack

Music

The musical score for ''Amistad'' was composed by

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who wa ...

. A soundtrack album was released on December 9, 1997 by

DreamWorks Records DreamWorks Records (often referred in copyright notices as SKG Music, LLC) was an American record label founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg as a subsidiary of DreamWorks Pictures. The label operated until 200 ...

Historical accuracy

Many academics, including

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

professor

Eric Foner Eric Foner (; born February 7, 1943) is an American historian. He writes extensively on American political history, the history of freedom, the early history of the Republican Party, African-American biography, the American Civil War, Reconstru ...

, have criticized ''Amistad'' for historical inaccuracy and the misleading characterizations of the ''Amistad'' case as a "turning point" in the American perspective on slavery.Foner, Eric
"The Amistad Case in Fact and Film"
History Matters. Accessed December 8, 2011. Foner wrote, "In fact, the ''Amistad'' case revolved around the Atlantic slave trade — by 1840 outlawed by international treaty — and had nothing whatsoever to do with slavery as a domestic institution. Incongruous as it may seem, it was perfectly possible in the nineteenth century to condemn the importation of slaves from Africa while simultaneously defending slavery and the flourishing slave trade within the United States... ''Amistad''’s problems go far deeper than such anachronisms as President Martin Van Buren campaigning for re-election on a whistle-stop train tour (in 1840, candidates did not campaign), or people constantly talking about the impending

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, which lay 20 years in the future."

Reception

Critical response

''Amistad'' received mainly positive reviews. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the film has an approval rating of 78% based on reviews from 67 critics, with an average score of 6.9/10. Its consensus reads, "Heartfelt without resorting to preachiness, ''Amistad'' tells an important story with engaging sensitivity and absorbing skill."

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

calculated an average score of 63 out of 100 based on 23 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by

CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...

gave the film an average grade of "A-" on an A+ to F scale. Susan Wloszczyna of ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' summed up the feelings of many reviewers when she wrote, "as Spielberg vehicles go, ''Amistad'' — part mystery, action thriller, courtroom drama, even culture-clash comedy — lands between the disturbing lyricism of ''

Schindler's List ''Schindler's List'' is a 1993 American epic historical drama film directed and produced by Steven Spielberg and written by Steven Zaillian. It is based on the 1982 novel ''Schindler's Ark'' by Australian novelist Thomas Keneally. The film fo ...

'' and the storybook artificiality of ''

The Color Purple ''The Color Purple'' is a 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker which won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction.

''."

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

awarded the film three out of four stars, writing: In 2014, the movie was one of several discussed by Noah Berlatsky in ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

'' in an article concerning white savior narratives in film, calling it "sanctimonious drivel." Morgan Freeman is very proud of the movie, having said, "I loved the film. I really did. I had a moment of err, during the killings. I thought that was a little over-wrought. But he (Spielberg) wanted to make a point and I understood that."

Box office

The film debuted at 3 on Wednesday, December 10, 1997. It earned $44,229,441 at the box office in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Awards and honors

''Amistad'' was nominated for

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

s in four categories: Best Supporting Actor (

), Best Original Dramatic Score (

), Best Cinematography (

Janusz Kamiński Janusz Zygmunt Kamiński (; born June 27, 1959) is a Polish cinematographer and director of film and television. He has established a partnership with Steven Spielberg, working as a cinematographer on his films since 1993. He won the Academy Awa ...

), and Best Costume Design (

Ruth E. Carter Ruth E. Carter (born April 10, 1960) is an American costume designer for film and television, with over 40 films to her credit, who is widely regarded as having mastered the look of multiple periods and genres in envisioning the clothing and ove ...

Footnotes

References

External links

* * * * *
''Amistad''
at Virtual History {{DEFAULTSORT:Amistad

Amistad (film) ''Amistad'' is a 1997 American historical drama film directed by Steven Spielberg, based on the events in 1839 aboard the Spanish slave ship '' La Amistad'', during which Mende tribesmen abducted for the slave trade managed to gain control of th ...

1997 films 1997 drama films 1990s American films 1990s English-language films 1990s historical drama films 1990s legal drama films American courtroom films American historical drama films American legal drama films Cultural depictions of Isabella II of Spain Cultural depictions of John Quincy Adams Cultural depictions of Martin Van Buren DreamWorks Pictures films Films about American politicians Films about American slavery Films about diplomacy Films about interpreting and translation Films about lawyers Films about mutinies Films about presidents of the United States Films directed by Steven Spielberg Films produced by Steven Spielberg Films scored by John Williams Films set in 1839 Films set in 1840 Films set in 1841 Films set in Boston Films set in the British Empire Films set in Connecticut Films set in Cuba Films set in New York (state) Films set in Sierra Leone Films set in Spain Films set in Washington, D.C. Films shot in Connecticut Films shot in Massachusetts Films shot in Rhode Island Films set on ships HBO Films films Mende-language films Military courtroom films