It would be easier to dismiss Amazing Grace for its historical elisions if it weren't also filled with so many great British actors larking about in knee breeches and powdered wigs; if it weren't, in other words, an entertainment. Among the more valuable players is Rufus Sewell as Thomas Clarkson, a reformer whose passion seems to tip into zealotry when he speaks about the French Revolution; you half expect him to pull on some wellies so he can wade through the blue blood about to spill over the Place de la Concorde. And no matter how stuffy the room or the speeches, the reliably brilliant Michael Gambon, who plays Lord Charles Fox with trembling jowls and flashing eyes, brings a sense of the world and its sensual pleasures with him.
The actors Toby Jones, who plays one of King George III's many sons, and Ciaran Hinds are also on hand for much of the parliamentary proceedings, delivering withering commentary and general amusement as two of Wilberforce's most powerful foes. Albert Finney also blusters in every so often as Wilberforce's mentor, John Newton, who wrote the song that gives the film its title. In many respects, Amazing Grace offers a snapshot of the British Empire at the beginning of its long decline as the dominating world power. It takes nothing away from Wilberforce and his stunning achievements to note that this film, at its best, is another reminder that no matter how diminished that political might, no one sells old-fashioned, Hollywood-style history and manners better than those acting royals across the pond.
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