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Hotel Rwanda Blu-ray Review
By Ian White
The Film
http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Hotel-Rwanda-Blu-ray.shtml
Published: 2011-05-22 - 04:45:12Blu-ray Disc and DVD : Blu-ray Disc Reviews
If there was any lesson learned from the Holocaust (although I'm not
entirely sure that all of its lessons were truly internalized), it was
that mankind can no longer remain silent in the presence of genocide.
The world was deadly silent during the Holocaust and not a finger was
lifted to combat the genocides in Armenia, Cambodia, Liberia, Tibet,
Syria, China, and many others.
The world showed a perplexing amount of interest in Bosnia, yet could
have cared less when 800,000 people were slaughtered in Rwanda under
the watchful eye of the United Nations. The massacre of Rwanda's Tutsi
population was intentionally swept under the rug by France, the U.N.,
and the United States and it was only because of media pressure did
the world act -- even though it was far too late. Hotel Rwanda (in a
manner similar to Schindler's List) does not attempt to explain the
Rwandan genocide, but instead how one man, Paul Rusesabagina, decided
to save as many people as he could.
Don Cheadle has proven on more than one occasion that he's a very fine
actor (Boogie Nights, Devil in a Blue Dress, Picket Fences), but a
different side of him emerged in Hotel Rwanda. He became Paul
Rusesabagina on many levels, and the film ultimately succeeds because
Cheadle figures out how not to preach; his character simply reacts to
the utter horror that surrounds him and his family and does something
quite unnatural -- he gets involved even though he knows he's likely
to pay the ultimate price. We would all like to think that there is a
"Rusesabagina" or "Schindler" inside of us; as I walked through
Schindler's former factory in Krakow in 1995, I wondered to myself "if
only there had been 10,000 more Oskar Schindlers."
Rusesabagina's actions saved over 1,200 people (who he hid inside the
hotel he managed) and it is a startling tale to watch unfold, but as I
watched the film, it kept gnawing at me that something was amiss. The
film is certainly powerful, but the story seems like it was toned down
to not rattle the powers that be. I hate to use the term "whitewash",
but director Terry George could have been even more explicit with the
violence and I don't think it would have diluted the story one bit.
Spielberg got away with it (although he also didn't go as far as he
could -- based on my conversations with my grandparents who survived
Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen) and George could have as well. An
excellent film that could have been even more powerful and
illuminating -- although watching the events in Libya, Syria,
Afghanistan, and Darfur, it's obvious that mankind hasn't learned a
damn thing.
The Picture
MGM has been "hit or miss" with some of its recent catalog Blu-ray
releases, but Hotel Rwanda might be the best of the bunch with
spectacularly deep blacks, fantastic color, and one of the sharpest
looking images I've seen on a Blu-ray release this year. The film's
organic film-like structure looks exceptionally clean and crisp. The
1080p transfer (which is offered in the film's original 2.35:1 aspect
ratio) has no visible noise or compression artifacts and offers a
tremendous amount of detail. Reference quality in every respect. Nice
job MGM. Too bad The Manchurian Candidate didn't look as good as this.
The Sound
For a film that is dialogue-heavy, I was quite surprised by the DTS-HD
Master Audio 5.1 mix; it offers an intense use of the surround and LFE
channels. Dialogue is strong and evenly balanced, and the entire mix
is quite immersive. The surround channels are frequently called upon;
gunfire, screaming crowds, and a lot of ambient effects. My subwoofer
(which has been quiet of late with some of the MGM releases) erupted
during some sequences and scared the hell out of my guests. The score
which includes tracks from Wyclef Jean and the Afro Celt Music System
is first-rate stuff and beautifully recorded. A very impressive
surround experience to say the least.
The Extras
MGM has done a good job with the bonus material, but there really
isn't anything on the Blu-ray that wasn't offered on the DVD release
from 2005. The commentaries feature a mixture of guests; Don Cheadle,
Wyclef Jean (who composed some of the music for the score), director
Terry George, and the real-life Paul Rusesabagina. Rusesabagina is the
most interesting as he's the only one who can really provide any
first-hand knowledge of the events in Rwanda. He's an amazing man with
a great story to tell.
The feaurette about the making of the film isn't a studio fluff piece,
but a rather terrifying telling of the genocide from the real Paul
Rusesabagina. The second featurette about his return to Rwanda is
brief, but still quite fascinating as he has the chance to interact
with some of the Hotel des Milles Collines employees.
Final Thoughts
Hotel Rwanda may not pack the same punch as The Killing Fields, but
this tale of heroism in the face of untold barbarity and genocide was
one of the best films of 2004 and was unfortunately lost in the
shuffle of Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby and Scorsese's The Aviator.
There is no excuse now to avoid this film because the Blu-ray transfer
is exceptional on all levels and well worthy of a place in your film
collection. And the price is right to boot. Highly recommended.
Product Details:
¢Actors: Don Cheadle, Sophie Okonedo, Nick Nolte, Joaquin Phoenix
¢Director: Terry George
¢Format: Widescreen, Subtitled, Dubbed
¢Video Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
¢Video Resolution: 1080p/24
¢Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
¢Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0, French
Dolby Digital 5.1
¢Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
¢Region: Region Free
¢Rating: PG-13
¢Number of Discs: 1
¢Studio: MGM
¢Running Time: 121 Minutes
¢DVD Release Date: May 10, 20111
¢MSRP: $19.99
¢Extras:
- ¦Commentaries - Don Cheadle, Wyclef Jean, Paul Rusesabagina, Terry George
- ¦Message for Peace (SD, 27:56)
- ¦Return to Rwanda (SD, 14:32)
- ¦Theatrical Trailer
Where to Buy:
¢Hotel Rwanda Blu-ray (Amazon.com)
Overall
Video
Audio
Movie
Extras
By Ian White
The Film
http://www.bigpicturebigsound.com/Hotel-Rwanda-Blu-ray.shtml
Published: 2011-05-22 - 04:45:12Blu-ray Disc and DVD : Blu-ray Disc Reviews
If there was any lesson learned from the Holocaust (although I'm not
entirely sure that all of its lessons were truly internalized), it was
that mankind can no longer remain silent in the presence of genocide.
The world was deadly silent during the Holocaust and not a finger was
lifted to combat the genocides in Armenia, Cambodia, Liberia, Tibet,
Syria, China, and many others.
The world showed a perplexing amount of interest in Bosnia, yet could
have cared less when 800,000 people were slaughtered in Rwanda under
the watchful eye of the United Nations. The massacre of Rwanda's Tutsi
population was intentionally swept under the rug by France, the U.N.,
and the United States and it was only because of media pressure did
the world act -- even though it was far too late. Hotel Rwanda (in a
manner similar to Schindler's List) does not attempt to explain the
Rwandan genocide, but instead how one man, Paul Rusesabagina, decided
to save as many people as he could.
Don Cheadle has proven on more than one occasion that he's a very fine
actor (Boogie Nights, Devil in a Blue Dress, Picket Fences), but a
different side of him emerged in Hotel Rwanda. He became Paul
Rusesabagina on many levels, and the film ultimately succeeds because
Cheadle figures out how not to preach; his character simply reacts to
the utter horror that surrounds him and his family and does something
quite unnatural -- he gets involved even though he knows he's likely
to pay the ultimate price. We would all like to think that there is a
"Rusesabagina" or "Schindler" inside of us; as I walked through
Schindler's former factory in Krakow in 1995, I wondered to myself "if
only there had been 10,000 more Oskar Schindlers."
Rusesabagina's actions saved over 1,200 people (who he hid inside the
hotel he managed) and it is a startling tale to watch unfold, but as I
watched the film, it kept gnawing at me that something was amiss. The
film is certainly powerful, but the story seems like it was toned down
to not rattle the powers that be. I hate to use the term "whitewash",
but director Terry George could have been even more explicit with the
violence and I don't think it would have diluted the story one bit.
Spielberg got away with it (although he also didn't go as far as he
could -- based on my conversations with my grandparents who survived
Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen) and George could have as well. An
excellent film that could have been even more powerful and
illuminating -- although watching the events in Libya, Syria,
Afghanistan, and Darfur, it's obvious that mankind hasn't learned a
damn thing.
The Picture
MGM has been "hit or miss" with some of its recent catalog Blu-ray
releases, but Hotel Rwanda might be the best of the bunch with
spectacularly deep blacks, fantastic color, and one of the sharpest
looking images I've seen on a Blu-ray release this year. The film's
organic film-like structure looks exceptionally clean and crisp. The
1080p transfer (which is offered in the film's original 2.35:1 aspect
ratio) has no visible noise or compression artifacts and offers a
tremendous amount of detail. Reference quality in every respect. Nice
job MGM. Too bad The Manchurian Candidate didn't look as good as this.
The Sound
For a film that is dialogue-heavy, I was quite surprised by the DTS-HD
Master Audio 5.1 mix; it offers an intense use of the surround and LFE
channels. Dialogue is strong and evenly balanced, and the entire mix
is quite immersive. The surround channels are frequently called upon;
gunfire, screaming crowds, and a lot of ambient effects. My subwoofer
(which has been quiet of late with some of the MGM releases) erupted
during some sequences and scared the hell out of my guests. The score
which includes tracks from Wyclef Jean and the Afro Celt Music System
is first-rate stuff and beautifully recorded. A very impressive
surround experience to say the least.
The Extras
MGM has done a good job with the bonus material, but there really
isn't anything on the Blu-ray that wasn't offered on the DVD release
from 2005. The commentaries feature a mixture of guests; Don Cheadle,
Wyclef Jean (who composed some of the music for the score), director
Terry George, and the real-life Paul Rusesabagina. Rusesabagina is the
most interesting as he's the only one who can really provide any
first-hand knowledge of the events in Rwanda. He's an amazing man with
a great story to tell.
The feaurette about the making of the film isn't a studio fluff piece,
but a rather terrifying telling of the genocide from the real Paul
Rusesabagina. The second featurette about his return to Rwanda is
brief, but still quite fascinating as he has the chance to interact
with some of the Hotel des Milles Collines employees.
Final Thoughts
Hotel Rwanda may not pack the same punch as The Killing Fields, but
this tale of heroism in the face of untold barbarity and genocide was
one of the best films of 2004 and was unfortunately lost in the
shuffle of Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby and Scorsese's The Aviator.
There is no excuse now to avoid this film because the Blu-ray transfer
is exceptional on all levels and well worthy of a place in your film
collection. And the price is right to boot. Highly recommended.
Product Details:
¢Actors: Don Cheadle, Sophie Okonedo, Nick Nolte, Joaquin Phoenix
¢Director: Terry George
¢Format: Widescreen, Subtitled, Dubbed
¢Video Codec: MPEG-4 AVC
¢Video Resolution: 1080p/24
¢Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
¢Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0, French
Dolby Digital 5.1
¢Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
¢Region: Region Free
¢Rating: PG-13
¢Number of Discs: 1
¢Studio: MGM
¢Running Time: 121 Minutes
¢DVD Release Date: May 10, 20111
¢MSRP: $19.99
¢Extras:
- ¦Commentaries - Don Cheadle, Wyclef Jean, Paul Rusesabagina, Terry George
- ¦Message for Peace (SD, 27:56)
- ¦Return to Rwanda (SD, 14:32)
- ¦Theatrical Trailer
Where to Buy:
¢Hotel Rwanda Blu-ray (Amazon.com)
Overall
Video
Audio
Movie
Extras