Schindler's List in Africa

Rating: 8/10 (30 October 2009)

What is the definition of a hero?
Naturally a hero is one who saves lives, but with a particular state of mind. Fictional heroes (including macho cops and super heroes) save lives but not in a moving way. They risk nothing and have no fear. They come to the resucue and a crowd cheers them on, before going back to their lives, not realizing that they could have been the ones in distress. Real heroes are people like Paul Rusesabagina, an African version of Oskar Schindler. He risked his life and everything he had, to save many lives out of love and selflessness.
The tiny, internationally neglected nation of Rwanda, in central Africa, is made up of two peoples, Hutus and Totsis. They are rivals. With the help of the UN, they almost made a peace treaty in 1994. On the day that was to happen, the Totsi rebels shot down the Hutu president. The Hutus then went on a massive manslaughter, taking no Tutsi prisoners, just hacking them down in cold blood (especially children, to prevent future generations) Paul Rusesabagina was the manager of one of the most luxurious Rwandan hotels. He was Hutu but his wife was Tutsi. By bribing the police (with what little he had) and thinking on the fly day and night amidst the gun fire that was erupting all over Rwanda, Paul was able to save the lives of 1200 innocent Tutsis, until the UN was able to transport them to freedom.
Rwanada is a sad story, not just because of what happened there, but because it took too long for the UN to give sufficient aid. The country was ignored by the rest of the world, practically dismissed as a speck of dirt.
The movie is not quite as heartbreaking as Schindler's List, but it is almost flawless. It feels like there are a couple of unnecessary sequences, but no movie is truly perfect. Sensational acting across the board except for Nick Nolte, who delivers his lines as if he is in a gangster movie. Probably a miscasting.
So once again, I ask you, what is a hero? Well, here is an example of a real one.