Mugabe and the White African
Metascore
77 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
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  1. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Cliff Doerksen
    90
    The notion that only whites can be racist barely survives this riveting 2009 documentary.
  2. Christian Science Monitor
    Reviewed by: Andy Klein
    83
    If there's anything missing from Bailey and Thompson's searing documentary, it's a consideration of the possible arguments against Campbell and Freeth.
  3. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Frank Scheck
    80
    Its awkward title notwithstanding, Mugabe and the White African offers the sort of narrative drama rarely found in documentaries.
  4. NPR
    Reviewed by: Mark Jenkins
    80
    The documentary is powerful, as far as it goes, but would be stronger if the filmmakers had been able to follow the story further.
  5. Empire
    Reviewed by: Ian Freer
    80
    This is one of those documentaries that stays with you for years. The injustice infuriates and the story, simply and deftly told, breaks your heart.
  6. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Ella Taylor
    80
    As their extraordinarily brave black female attorney points out, at stake are not merely the rights of this family or indeed of all white farmers, but the future of race relations and human rights in Africa.
  7. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Gary Goldstein
    80
    Though much of the movie was shot in secret to protect the filmmakers, Bailey and Thompson managed to create a remarkably vivid portrait of a land and its people, while bringing us two unforgettable heroes in Campbell and Freeth.
  8. Variety
    Reviewed by: Ronnie Scheib
    80
    The documentary sometimes bears an eerie resemblance to Claire Denis' brilliant "White Material" in its tense evocation of menace stalking the periphery of the frame.
  9. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    75
    It seems to me that Campbell has a good case here--good enough, anyway, to convince the judges on the African court.
  10. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Mike Hale
    70
    The courses of colonialism and racial strife were radically different in America and Australia than they were in Africa. That doesn't make Mr. Freeth's cause any less just, but it does mean that Mugabe and the White African needs to be approached with care.
  11. Time Out New York
    Reviewed by: Eric Hynes
    60
    The film clandestinely captures marauders in action while embedding itself in the imperiled home of aging farmer Michael Campbell. He's not the movie's ad hoc martyr, but something more compelling: a simple man whose fight for personal justice has matured into patriotism.

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