I have been showing this film in Sociology since I first watched it. Even after multiple viewings, I can't help but tear up multiple times, when I watch it. As of yet, I haven't been able to finish "Hotel Rwanda". A dislike for biographies is a part of that. Part of it is the "happy" feeling at the end, when you realize that he helped people (similar to Schindler's end scene with the rocks placed on his grave). We lose track in some dramas based on tragic events, rationalizing the tragedy by cheering the heroes, and walking away. We feel an uplift, but we forget that the victims are still out there, the loss is real, and the events can be repeated if we don't work to stop it. The film is not perfect, although Idris Elba carries this film so well. The scenery is Rwanda, the actors are African. This is not polished because reality is not polished. It is a beautiful thing. The fact that Idris Elba was unknown when this film was made was so much more powerful, because no one got excited to see "that actor". You took him as he was, and the story carried the day, not the actors. The enemy was faceless, because it was monolithic. Whites were pushed to the side, because this truly was an African event.
If you want to watch a Rwanda genocide film, this is the one.
If you want to watch a Rwanda genocide film, this is the one.