Hotel Rwanda

Bill Clinton recently confessed that his one biggest regret during his Presidency was failing to avoid the Rwandan genocide of 1994. Almost 1 million Rwandans were murdered in the spring and summer of 1994, as the extremist Hutu's embarked on the systematic slaughter of the minority Tutsi people. Hotel Rwanda portrays one mans account of the horrors of this tragedy, and the failure of the UN to control the ensuing chaos.

Paul Rusesabagina (played impressively by Don Cheadle) is the Hutu manager of a successful hotel in the Rwandan capital Kigali, which is forced into becoming a makeshift refugee camp as the fighting intensifies. He attempts to maintain normality whilst simultaneously hiding almost 1200 refugees, many of whom were Tutsi's. However, once abandoned by the UN, this proves too tough a task amid the horrors happening literally outside the gates of the hotel. His survival to that point had been prolonged on account of him being a Hutu and notable member of the community. Once it becomes clear that he is harbouring Tutsi's, he himself becomes a target and the Hotel is set upon. Rusesabagina is thus forced to protect himself and those inside the Hotel through a combination of bribery, smart lies and phonecalls to powerful friends.

There are some deeply moving moments, such as that when the French army extract the Westerners from the Hotel, leaving the local Rwandans inside the hotel thus condemning them to almost certain death. One of the most disturbing points of the film is towards the end, when Cheadle and his driver are returning from collecting supplies from the warehouse of a corrupt businessman. In thick fog, it appears they have taken a wrong turning onto a bumpy track. On stopping the vehicle and stepping outside however, it becomes clear that they are in fact on the correct road, and the bumps are caused by something altogether more horrific.

Overall, I felt the screenplay lacked a certain depth and felt rushed despite clocking up almost 120 minutes, and too many of the key characters were not terribly well developed. The dialogue is a tad clumsy in parts - for example in a scene towards the start when Joaquin Phoenix's American character asks for and is given an idiots guide background to the Rwandan crisis. Surely as a war journalist he would already have known that??! In fairness though, this was obviously aimed at providing the viewer with a brief introduction, although it could have been handled more cleverly. Then there is the stereotypical lesbian-esque Red Cross worker, who is seemingly killled by a land mine mid-movie, but miraculously re-appears in the final scene in true Hollywood style. Despite the films shortcomings, it is still an interesting account of a difficult subject and I would recommend Hotel Rwanda for anyone seeking an understanding of this dark chapter in Africa's recent history.