The Last King of Scotland (2006)

Dictator Idi Amin ruled Uganda by terror during the 1970s, but this adaptation of the 1998 novel looks at the man within the monster via a fictional relationship between Amin (Forest Whitaker) and a young Scottish doctor (James McAvoy). ''It's a thriller with a Faustian pact at the center,'' says director Kevin Macdonald, who blends his fictional narrative with real events. The director filmed mostly in Uganda, with the help of many citizens still conflicted about the late despot. ''I'd meet people who said, 'Amin was so funny! Remember when he did this? But, of course, he killed my father.'''