The story revolves around a hotel manager who saved 1,268 civilians from the Rwandan genocide in 1994. The Rwandan genocide claimed the lives of 500,000 people in 100 days. If you are like me, I could just vaguely recall reading in the papers during that time about the inhumane killing of Tutsis by the Hutus.
It is of interest that there was a remark in the movie that the West was not as keen to help in the genocide besides evacuation of their own nationals as it did not affect share prices or help politicians to gain more votes. I am as guilty as the West is as Africa's politics and economy do not have a significant impact on Singapore.
What makes it truly inspirational is that it is a true story of this man, Paul Rusesabagina. He was an ordinary man who summoned extraordinary courage to save the lives of others. He currently lives in Belgium with his wife, children, and two adopted nieces.
Paul Rusesabagina said in a lecture that the film was "less violent" than the actual genocide, claiming that "you couldn't invite someone to watch the real thing."
'Slumdog Millionaire' is a feel-good but fictitious story of hope. 'Hotel Rwanda' is real and it is nice to know that there are still good and selfless people in this materialistic world of ours.
For background reading, go to Wiki -
(1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_Rwanda - After watching, might want to read the Accuracy section.
(2) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Rusesabagina
(3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rwandan_Genocide
P/S - It continues to be one of the most-rented films on services such as Netflix, and is listed by the American Film Institute as one of the 100 most inspirational movies of all time.
