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Hotel Rwanda
I started thread related to the viewing of this movie, but I wanted to leave a short review of the film itself, as well.
While certainly not a major piece of cinematic art (which is comforting, really, the subject matter doesn't warrant the fancies of a filmmaker's ego) I thought it was a very good film for relaying the horror of one of the worst exhibitions of brutality in the the latter half of the 20th century without resorting to either overt displays of violence or sentimentality. This was a respectful and purposeful film that succeeded on most every relevant level. I've always thought that Don Cheadle was one of the finest and most likable actors working today. I love his quiet and unassuming charm. This film is certainly the most outstanding example to date of his turning that charm to a near flawless and believable characterization. The film is populated with many other notable performances, as well, although I thought Nick Nolte and Joaquin Phoenix's performances were oddly unmemorable - perhaps for good reason - their roles were pretty utilitarian. If I were to turn any criticism to this film, based solely on a cinematic level, it would be that the dialogue in places is a little expository in that is used to tell us about the background of the Hutu/Tutsi conflict and events happening outside the hotel in awkward, unrealistic ways. But I can certainly understand the difficulty inherent in trying to tell a story like this from within such a limited perspective.
All in all I thought it was a very good film and I'll give it 9/10 stars.
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Most people go through life dreading they'll have a traumatic experience. Freaks were born with their trauma. They've already passed their test in life. They're aristocrats. - Diane Arbus
PESSIMISM, n. A philosophy forced upon the convictions of the observer by the disheartening prevalence of the optimist with his scarecrow hope and his unsightly smile. - Ambrose Bierce
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