"Shooting Dogs" is a movie based on the true story of two dedicated mens and their will to help several Rwandans during the conflicts between the Hutu and Tutsi tribes in 1994. Michael Caton-Jones director of "Rob Roy" tells the story of Christopher, a priest (John Hurt) and Joe, a English teacher (Hugh Dancy) and their commitment to the Rwandans refugees surrounded by a dangerous group in a school. Their mission is to do their best that they can to save everyone's life.
For those who doesn't know the conflicts between these tribes here's a short summary. In 1994 the power was controlled by the Hutu tribe. In the same year a peace process was in development and the UN was sent to Rwanda to assure that peace would be assured. But the president of Rwanda died in a plane crash and the Hutu started a military coup persecuting all the Tutsi. A genocide happened in only a few months and UN forces couldn't do anything because their orders was to evacuate all the foreigners living in the country and only shoot if they were attached. Thousands of Tutsi were killed during this dark period.
In the movie the main characters are trapped in a school along with a Captain (Dominique Horwitz) and the UN soldiers, and thousands of refugees, including many Joe's students such as Marie (Clare-Hope Ashitey). UN Forces can only impeach the Hutu entrance in the school, and that disturbs the priest and Joe because outside of the school and the church walls there are many killings happening in front of them and no one can't do a single thing to stop it. In one of the most emblematic scenes of the movie after returning of a dangerous trip to get some medicine for a sick baby, the priest is warned by the Captain that the dogs must be killed because they were eating the decomposing bodies of the victims. The father replies to the Captain: The dogs were shooting at you? No, so you can't shoot the dogs because you have to follow with your mission and your mission is only shoot if the other side shoot you. That's why the title "Shooting Dogs".
It's a very strong and powerful movie, sometimes sentimental, but quite controversial. I watched because I wanted to see a different point of view on the same subject of movies like "Sometimes in April", "Hotel Rwanda" and the documentary "Shake Hands with the devil: the Journey of Romeo Dallaire" all of them are accounts of the genocide in Rwanda. All great movies, very similar to each other. The main difference here is that we seen the point of view of white characters. An English teacher, an English priest, an french captain and a BBC reporter are some of the persons involved in the tragic events. We seen their different reactions to all the deaths, the desperate ways to help people or to criticize and compare kinds of genocide like the BBC reporter, played by Nicola Walker, tells to Joe. Depending on your social and personal views you might hate her character when she says to Joe that the killing of people in Bosnia was more serious and shocking than the killing of "just Africans". This scene emphasize many hypocritical behavior of well established countries. Sad but truth.
The director made a wonderful job here, leaving a soft movie in the beginning with some light and funny moments, and then like a dramatic symphony he was adding more dark moments, creating tension in every time that Joe or the priest went on searching a person they know or the medicine for the baby. John Hurt has another good moment in his career with this movie, playing the helpful, warm, man of faith whose help is needed in every possible situation, a courageous man. Hugh Dancy once again proved to be a great actor. He's in comedies such as "Ella Enchanted" and in dramas like "Shooting Dogs". Even when the movie is bad such as "Evening" is great to see that someone is doing a nice job. Here, playing the young and idealist teacher who fears that his life's in danger but he's still wants to help everybody because it's the right to do and since he was a fortunate child who had everything he wanted he wants to share his joy and experience to the less fortunate Rwandans. It's an outstanding movie that didn't had the attention that it needed by time of its release in cinemas. But TV and DVD will help to spread its message. 10/10
For those who doesn't know the conflicts between these tribes here's a short summary. In 1994 the power was controlled by the Hutu tribe. In the same year a peace process was in development and the UN was sent to Rwanda to assure that peace would be assured. But the president of Rwanda died in a plane crash and the Hutu started a military coup persecuting all the Tutsi. A genocide happened in only a few months and UN forces couldn't do anything because their orders was to evacuate all the foreigners living in the country and only shoot if they were attached. Thousands of Tutsi were killed during this dark period.
In the movie the main characters are trapped in a school along with a Captain (Dominique Horwitz) and the UN soldiers, and thousands of refugees, including many Joe's students such as Marie (Clare-Hope Ashitey). UN Forces can only impeach the Hutu entrance in the school, and that disturbs the priest and Joe because outside of the school and the church walls there are many killings happening in front of them and no one can't do a single thing to stop it. In one of the most emblematic scenes of the movie after returning of a dangerous trip to get some medicine for a sick baby, the priest is warned by the Captain that the dogs must be killed because they were eating the decomposing bodies of the victims. The father replies to the Captain: The dogs were shooting at you? No, so you can't shoot the dogs because you have to follow with your mission and your mission is only shoot if the other side shoot you. That's why the title "Shooting Dogs".
It's a very strong and powerful movie, sometimes sentimental, but quite controversial. I watched because I wanted to see a different point of view on the same subject of movies like "Sometimes in April", "Hotel Rwanda" and the documentary "Shake Hands with the devil: the Journey of Romeo Dallaire" all of them are accounts of the genocide in Rwanda. All great movies, very similar to each other. The main difference here is that we seen the point of view of white characters. An English teacher, an English priest, an french captain and a BBC reporter are some of the persons involved in the tragic events. We seen their different reactions to all the deaths, the desperate ways to help people or to criticize and compare kinds of genocide like the BBC reporter, played by Nicola Walker, tells to Joe. Depending on your social and personal views you might hate her character when she says to Joe that the killing of people in Bosnia was more serious and shocking than the killing of "just Africans". This scene emphasize many hypocritical behavior of well established countries. Sad but truth.
The director made a wonderful job here, leaving a soft movie in the beginning with some light and funny moments, and then like a dramatic symphony he was adding more dark moments, creating tension in every time that Joe or the priest went on searching a person they know or the medicine for the baby. John Hurt has another good moment in his career with this movie, playing the helpful, warm, man of faith whose help is needed in every possible situation, a courageous man. Hugh Dancy once again proved to be a great actor. He's in comedies such as "Ella Enchanted" and in dramas like "Shooting Dogs". Even when the movie is bad such as "Evening" is great to see that someone is doing a nice job. Here, playing the young and idealist teacher who fears that his life's in danger but he's still wants to help everybody because it's the right to do and since he was a fortunate child who had everything he wanted he wants to share his joy and experience to the less fortunate Rwandans. It's an outstanding movie that didn't had the attention that it needed by time of its release in cinemas. But TV and DVD will help to spread its message. 10/10