Gut wrenching yet not sentimental

Rating: 10/10 (12 January 2005)

The danger with movies like Hotel Rwanda is that the history swamps the story or the story doesn't do justice to the history. The story achieves a perfect balance between the 2 by not forcing a view of events on us rather showing enough of it's impact on the characters to allow us to form our own opinion.
The characters are thoughtfully built up without being one dimensional and the acting is out of the top draw. Each of the characters evolves as the movie develops. We see the superficial being peeled away to reveal the betrayed Paul, the impotent yet heroic UN captain and tens of other characters that will stay with you.
Don't go expecting to enjoy the movie rather go expecting to be moved deeply by it. Much to the shame of the Western world it is a modern day Schindler's list and a reason for the UN to exist.