Hotel Rwanda
Composite Score: 85.5
Starring: Don Cheadle, Sophie Okonedo, Joaquin Phoenix, Desmond Dube, Hakeem Kae-Kazim, Tony Kgoroge, Nick Nolte, Fana Mokoena, Lebo Mashile, David O’Hara, Cara Seymour, and Jean Reno
Director: Terry George
Writers: Keir Pearson and Terry George
Genres: Biography, Drama, History, Thriller, War
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for violence, disturbing images, and brief strong language
Box Office: $33.88 million worldwide
Why should you Watch This Film?
Hotel Rwanda is the historical drama from Terry George about Paul Rusesabagina and his efforts to protect Tutsis during the Rwandan Genocide in 1994 by sheltering them at the hotel where he worked. It stars Don Cheadle in that leading role, joined by Sophie Okonedo as his wife Tatiana, Joaquin Phoenix as an international cameraman who seeks to document the atrocities being committed against the Tutsis, and Nick Nolte as the commander of the hamstrung U.N. forces sent to “keep the peace” in the nation. Its exploration of the long-term effects of colonization, methods of dehumanization used in genocides, and the effectiveness (or lack thereof) of the United Nations in resolving international crises make it a film that should never be far from anyone’s watchlist. It also received Oscar nominations for Best Original Screenplay, Best Lead Actor (Cheadle), and Best Supporting Actress (Okonedo).
Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?
Basically everyone I’ve met who went to organized school and was born in the 1990s watched this film as part of a high school history class, and while I recognize that’s not necessarily a shining endorsement, I do think it says a lot about the film’s watchability. It engages well with heavy subject matter, showing the effects of genocide and inaction without falling anywhere near the trauma porn and gore fests that some films about such atrocities can stray into. As such, I think the only reason not to watch this film is if you are someone under the age of fourteen(?) or so with no context for the film or its subject matter. It presupposes some knowledge of United Nations policies, Rwandan history, and an understanding of the partitioning of Africa, which maybe not every viewer will have, so that might be another slight barrier to entry to be aware of before you put this one on.
So wait, why should you Watch This Film?
Overall, Hotel Rwanda feels like a classic historical biopic, hitting all the key moments of despair, ineptitude of peripheral characters, threat to the protagonist, and eventual victory over seemingly insurmountable odds. What sets it apart is the way that it handles its subject matter and the performances from Cheadle and Okonedo. Sophie Okonedo delivers a strong showing as Tatiana throughout the film, giving Cheadle an easy partner in his endeavors through a strong conveyance of emotion in every scene. She has one of the most memorable moments of “acting” that I have ever seen in a film – whenever I think of this film or of her, I picture this one scene over anything else – when she executes the purest look of terror and despair that I have ever seen right around the start of the film’s final act. It is a haunting performance that will never not stick in my mind. Cheadle obviously does the bulk of the film’s heavy lifting as its historical protagonist. He gives a strong performance as Paul, which much deserved his Oscar nomination, simply for the range of life experiences that he is able to showcase to his audience. He takes us through the life of a successful businessman who almost loses his family multiple times before becoming a beacon of hope to the oppressed, standing against his own people who are enacting genocide. It’s an iconic leading performance that remains one of the actor’s best.
In covering genocide, specifically one that was brought about by arbitrary rules and power dynamics set in place by a European colonial power, Hotel Rwanda does not shy away from the facts of exploitation and ineptitude on the part of the Western powers. It likewise does a good job of reminding its audience of the culpability of the leaders of the genocide in carrying it out rather than rejecting the labels and conflict that was manufactured by their Belgian colonizers. It walks that difficult but important line of blaming the immediate and global causes of the atrocity on which it focuses and solidifies its importance to modern viewing in the process.
Hotel Rwanda does the important work of showing audiences that the Rwandan Genocide was carried out by actual people as the result of European colonization of the nation, all of it with engrossing performances from its lead man and chief supporting lady, warranting recognition as one of the Greatest Films of All Time. It has some semi-mandatory reading attached to fully understand the entirety of the film’s situations, which means that not everyone will get the same impact out of it. If you want to dive in, though, it can currently be streamed on Amazon Prime Video.
