I went to see Invictus last night, a film I wouldn’t usually class as my cup of tea, but as it was based around both SA and Rugby, I had to give it a chance! The film is definitely worth a watch, a great feel good movie, although not that historically accurate.
I looked up the poem Invictus when I got back, the poem Nelson Mandela gives to Francois Pienaar in the film. Although Mandela did have a copy of the poem in his cell, he actually gave Francois an except from a speech by Teddy Roosevelt. Both are great pieces, but I think I prefer the speech. Not sure why the film had to mix it all up, I guess ‘Invictus’ is better than ‘The Man in the Arena’ as a film title.
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.
Teddy Roosevelt