Sunday, March 18, 2012

Hotel Rwanda

In 1994 Rwanda, when members of the Hutu tribe begin a murderous rebellion against their Tutsi rulers, a hotel owner of the rebelling tribe is comfortable with turning a blind eye, until the uprising threatens his Tutsi wife and children. At first only wishing to aid his family, the manager has a sudden change of heart and begins to go broke sheltering numerous refugees from the horrific genocide that plagued the country and went largely ignored by the rest of the world. Terry George's "Hotel Rwanda" places a humanistic face on the Rwandan atrocities and is centered on a supremely effective and career best performance from Don Cheadle. Instead of portraying a superman, Cheadle plays a real man coming to terms with his situation and doing everything within his power to do good in the face of madness. "Hotel Rwanda" is an unnerving and well-realized portrait of a tragic instance.