EC:WC FCA Review – Hotel Rwanda

A West Coast Film Critic Review

One powerfully effective retelling of the African genocidal massacres of the mid-90s, shown through the eyes of a courageous hotel administrator. Don Cheadle plays the roll of Paul Rusesabagina, the assistant manager of the Hotel des Milles Collines (a Belgian-owned resort in Kigali, Rwanda). Rwanda had been run by the Belgian-chosen Tutsi clan - the taller, lighter-skinned, thinner-nosed citizenry. But when Belgium pulls out of the country, the French-backed rival Hutu clan seeks revenge for their years of oppression.

But not all Rwandans have this intense hatred of their fellow countrymen, many of whom have intermarried over the years (including Rusesabagina). His family and friends are forced to take refuge at his hotel, where he soon has to protect hundreds more of his fellow Rwandans facing persecution. Known for his style and smooth talk, Paul begins to cash in the chips he's collected over the years through the various friendships and relationships he’d built over the years as hotel manager.

For two hours, you are experiencing the escalation of this calamity through the eyes of Rusesabagina. It’s not only fine storytelling, it’s downright affecting. There are a few brief moments when the film director chooses to awkwardly preach to his audience. I felt that it wasn’t needed since the rest of the film does such a fine job of explaining things without beating you over the head.

There are quite a few harrowing moments in the film, including an absolutely haunting scene in which Paul and a fellow hotel employee need to drive through a dense morning fog and encounter what can only be described as an ethereal nightmare. Cheadle's performance here as well as in the scene immediately following is acting excellence.

The western world does not get off easy in this re-telling of the genocidal atrocities in Rwanda. Fingers are sharply pointed at the U.N., with particular emphasis on the lack of compassion and intervention from France, Belgium and the U.S. under the Clinton administration.

There are several extras on the DVD that are also well worth the viewing: a commentary by Don Cheadle on several key scenes, and two documentaries – “A Message of Peace: The Making of Hotel Rwanda” and “Return to Rwanda”. These extras help to explain the historical events which are the basis of the film, as well as the process of making the movie. I highly recommend taking the time to watch these extras immediately after the movie ends.

Hotel Rwanda is definitely a 4 wine bottles out of 5 film! With fine performances by Don Cheadle and Sophie Okonedo (who plays his Tutsi wife, Tatiana), it places recent history right in your lap. And it forces you to ask why this world is letting similar situations continue in Sudan and the Congo.