So, I'm trying to decide how I feel about the rumor that Jennifer Hudson may be gearing up to play Winnie Mandela. Readers of this blog may know that I loved District 9, and I would really, really like to see some powerful, engaging movies about South African history. I find Hudson basically likable, but I thought she was awful in Sex and the City (which wasn't entirely her fault, the part was humiliatingly underwritten, she was essentially Carrie Bradshaw's Magical Black Assistant who leaves New York City to get married). I haven't seen Dreamgirls and don't ever intend to (It's a long, personal story. I'm sure it's good. I just can't watch it.), but from what I hear of it, it sounds like Hudson can show some genuine emotional range when it comes to heartbreak.
But I have no idea if she's able to embody someone who is viewed as both a national liberator, and as the woman who cheated on Nelson Mandela, and as someone who was was accused of involvement in 18 human rights abuses including eight murders. That's multitudes for an actress to take on: she'd have to be convincing in all those dimensions for that portrayal to be as powerful as it deserves to me.
I also have my doubts about Idris Elba as Mandela. Don't get me wrong, I love the man. I would take up with Stringer Bell after he had my baby-daddy murdered in prison any day. But the physical typing doesn't feel right. That doesn't matter if the acting is strong enough--Philip Seymour Hoffman is a much bigger dude than Truman Capote, and he absolutely nailed that one. Maybe Elba can do it. And depending on how familiar audiences are with Mandela, maybe it doesn't matter (although Morgan Freeman's performance as Mandela in Invictus might remind people enough, and the physical resemblance there is a lot stronger). It may also be that I'm just way too nervous and invested in a movie like this for me to be sanguine about it in advance. If it happens, I hope it's good.