Highly recommend this film if you want to get the wind knocked out of you. Keeps your life perspective balanced in the pursuit of a faster triathlon. Shows you what a delight the human race is, to the tune of 1 million dead. Makes you realize that Western and US intervention overseas is in no way based on the protection of justice or democracy. Even Saddam (psychopath that he is) couldn’t match the carnage in Rwanda. But then we (the US) aren’t in Iraq to stop any carnage–we are there to keep our SUVs gassed and rollin.’
As the Iraqis themselves say best: “We know the Americans would not be here if we were just growing strawberries in the desert…”
Couldn’t agree more. Very sobering film. Don Cheadle was incredible. I had zero desire to watch it but got dragged to see it. I was tearing more than my wife by the end. (then again, I teared in The Parent Trap (the new one), and toy story 2). Then again, my wife NEVER cries in movies.
I haven’t seen this movie yet, but I’m planning on seeing it as soon as possible. However I did see a documentary a few months back, I can’t remember which channel (Discovery? History? maybe a 60 minutes type thing?) Anyway, it was a very well done documentary about the Rwanda genocide, very sobering, horrifying. It makes you wonder how human beings could behave in such a possessed way. Disgusting.
I haven’t seen the film yet, but if you’re looking for a fantastic book on the UN response (or lack thereof) to Rwanda, I’d strongly recommend Eyewitness to a Genocide by Michael Barnett. Barnett is a Poli Sci PhD that does work on international organizations - he was on my dissertation committee until he took an endowed chair at Minnesota. Barnett was advising at the UN at the time and gives a really fantastic inside look at how the UN handled the situation.
I read the Dallaire book and then saw the movie. The movie is pretty powerful and only somewhat Hollywood. There are scenes in the movie that are similar to and as gruesome as those described by Dallaire.
