powerful, compelling, appalling, outstanding

Rating: 10/10 (24 February 2005)

10/10 Best way to describe this movie is a cross between Schindler's List and The Pianist - two of the most powerful films I've ever seen. While Paul's (Don Cheadle) situation continues to get worse as the movie progresses just like Adrien Brody, he does whatever he can to help the Tutsi and Hutu refugees at his hotel. Cheadle is gripping - this from a man who has played a wide range of roles from a porn star with an identity crisis in Boogie Nights to Sammy Davis Jr. in the Rat Pack - and he supplements the troubling story of the country's civil war and genocide with a flawless performance. I immediately wanted to research the Rwanda situation after I saw the movie to learn more than the little I already knew - it truly was a war fought for outrageous reasons, and the ignorance of the rest of the world (something the movie did well to convey) at that time is hard to imagine. I would give Cheadle the nod for Best Actor, and the movie is a must-see for people of all backgrounds. An amazing film.