Outstanding!

Rating: 9/10 (17 January 2005)

This is one of the best movies I have seen. Certainly the best so far this year. I am embarrassed to say I was ignorant of the events in Rwanda in 1994. Like one character in the movie said, people in other countries will see this on TV and say it is so horrible, but then they will go out and eat dinner. This movie skillfully tells of the horrors - the conflicts between Tutsis and Hutus, the genocide, without overdramatizing it. It was more like telling the facts. It held my attention from beginning to end.
SPOILERS AHEAD................
I remember one scene is particular. Paul (Don Cheadle's character) and his van driver are returning to the hotel late at night and suddenly the road is bumpy.
Paul asks the driver to stop the van and steps out. Actually he falls out because he has just stepped on a corpse, and then the horrifying scene- he is surrounded by a very large number of corpses.
There are also some very warm moments in the movie- Paul's family, his friends, employees, acquaintances, and the 'powerrful' people- his relationships to them are portrayed beautifully. He uses all his negotiations skills to save lives of over 1200 people. Without him they would have certainly died. He was a real hero who never gave up.
The acting and direction were great. Don Cheadle is brilliant as Paul. I hope he will be nominated for the Oscar. He gets excellent support from the cast, and particularly Sophie, who plays his wife in the movie.
It is hard to describe in words how effective this movie is. All I can say is- Go see it.