A United Kingdom

On the eve of South African separate-but-equal expansion, Seretse, the Prince of Bechuanaland (eventually to become Botswana) meets and marries a working class white woman (Rosamund Pike), escaping the segregation of Europe for the segregation of his African homeland.  From the outset, their chemistry is overshadowed by the chemistry of both genealogy and gemology as the British government is terrified that their relationship will cause neighboring South Africa to leave the Commonwealth and deprive the Empire of its mineral wealth. Adding to the dilemma, the acting regent in the area is Seretse’s uncle who is convinced his nephew is not ready to assume his duties as king since his “queen” poses an affront to their people under colonialism.  David Oyelowo is particularly effective as a man caught between the State and his own happiness in director Amma Asante’s fact-based film set in the 1940s as the British Empire begins to fracture under the destabilization of individual defiance and human rights.

[PG-13]