Hotel Rwanda tells the story of an unlikely hero, the hotel manager of a five star hotel in the capital of Rwanda at a time when his country was falling into chaos. Paul Ruseabagina was half Hutu, half Tutsi and didn’t seem to care much about politics, only in the sense that he knew who to bribe to get good whiskey and who to favor to protect his family. Eventually his skills at finagaling were put to an immense test as civil war broke out and the ethnic cleansing of the tutsi’s commenced. 1200 people sought refuge in his hotel, which he managed to maintain as a sanctuary through bribes and force of will. “As long as they think of this place as a foreign-owned five star hotel and not a refugee camp.” The movie is well made, and Don Cheadle will get an Oscar nod without a doubt. They use a quote from Clinton’s spokesman that showed how much of a backbone you can find from a guy who says “it depends on what your definition of is is.” It’s definitely worth a look if you can find it at a theater near you. I saw the movie in Bethesda, headquarters of the Blue State anti-American crowd, with my friend Russ who gave up smoking this weekend. He needed to see movies to get his mind of cigarettes and his desire to hit someone in the face. Unfortunately, surrounded by Kerry Edwards stickers, his rage was only magnified. ]]>
Hotel Rwanda