Independent Cinema for Everyone

A United Kingdom is a powerful testament to the defiant and enduring love story of Seretse Khama, King of Bechuanaland (modern Botswana) and Ruth Williams, the London office worker he married in 1948 in the face of fierce opposition from their families and the government of the time. Anchored by commanding performances from Oyelowo and Pike, Asante’s filmmaking relishes the contrasts between the cool, subdued tones of London and the colour-saturated heat of Botswana. This is a film of great contemporary relevance, one that celebrates the triumph of love and intelligence over intolerance and oppression, and which confirms Asante as one of the UK’s most distinctive and important filmmakers.

Dir. Amma Asante, UK, 2016, 110 mins. Cast. David Oyelowo, Rosamund Pike, Jack Davenport.