Hotel Rwanda (2004, Movie)

In 1994 in Rwanda, a million members of the Tutsi tribe were killed by members of the Hutu tribe in a massacre that took place while the world looked away.  It is the story of a hotel manager who saved the lives of 1,200 people by being, essentially, a very good hotel manager. The man is named Paul Rusesabagina, and he is played by Don Cheadle as a man of quiet, steady competence in a time of chaos.  He has been trained in Belgium and runs the four-star Hotel Des Milles Collines in the capital city of Kigali. Things he understands make him an expert on situational ethics. 

Rwanda's enemy tribes were forced into the same land.  For years in Rwanda under the Belgians, the Tutsis ruled and killed not a few Hutu. Now the Hutus are in control, and armed troops prowl the nation, killing Tutsis.

There is a United Nations "presence" in Rwanda, represented by Col. Oliver (Nick Nolte).   Paul's hotel is hardly functioning, the economy has broken down, the country is ruled by anarchy, but he puts on his suit and tie every morning and fakes business as usual -- even on a day he is so frightened, he cannot tie his tie.

"Hotel Rwanda" is not about hotel management, but about heroism and survival.  Rusesabagina rises to the challenge. The film works not because the screen is filled with meaningless special effects, formless action and vast digital armies, but because Cheadle, Nolte and the filmmakers are interested in how two men choose to function in an impossible situation. 

Despite flaws in execution, this is a film of rare courage and imperishable heart.