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guzzle
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17 May 2015, 5:10 pm

Modern History?

Hotel Rwanda

Quote:
Tensions between the Hutu and Tutsi peoples lead to a war in Rwanda, where corruption and bribes between politicians are routine. Paul Rusesabagina (Cheadle), the manager of the Sabena owned Hôtel des Mille Collines, is Hutu, but his wife Tatiana (Okonedo), is Tutsi. His marriage is a source of friction with Hutu extremists, most prominently Georges Rutaganda (Kae-Kazim), a friendly goods supplier to the hotel who is also the local leader of Interahamwe, a brutal Hutu militia.

As the political situation in the country worsens following the assassination of the president, Paul and his family observe neighbors being killed in ethnic violence, initiating the early stages of a genocide. Paul curries favor with people of influence, bribing them with money and alcohol, seeking to maintain sufficient influence to keep his family safe. When civil war erupts and a Rwandan Army officer threatens Paul and his neighbors, Paul barely negotiates their safety, and brings them to the hotel. More evacuees arrive at the hotel from the overburdened UN refugee camp, the Red Cross, and various orphanages. Paul must divert the Hutu soldiers, care for the refugees, be a source of strength to his family, and maintain the appearance of a functioning hotel as the situation becomes more violent.

The UN Peacekeeping forces, led by Canadian Colonel Oliver (Nolte), are unable to take assertive action against the Interahamwe since they are forbidden to intervene in the genocide. The foreign nationals are evacuated, but the Rwandans are left behind. When the UN forces attempt to evacuate a group of refugees, including Paul's family, they are ambushed and must turn back. In a last-ditch effort to save the refugees, Paul pleads with the Rwandan Army General, Augustin Bizimungu (Mokoena) for assistance. However, when Paul's bribes no longer work, he blackmails the General with threats of being tried as a war criminal. Soon after, the family and the hotel refugees are finally able to leave the besieged hotel in a UN convoy. They travel through retreating masses of refugees and militia to reach safety behind Tutsi rebel lines.

The film's epilogue displays a series of graphics stating that Rusesabagina saved 1,268 Rwandan refugees at the Hôtel des Mille Collines, and now lives in Belgium with his family. It notes that Rutaganda and General Bizimungu were tried and convicted by the UN for war crimes in 2002, while also conveying that the genocide ended in July 1994 leaving almost a million people dead.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_Rwanda


The film itself didn't leave me feeling sad more like sobered up. Based on a true story.



Campin_Cat
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18 May 2015, 11:33 am

Titanic (probably already saw it)
Joan of Arc (with Leelee Sobieski; one of my all-time favorites; about war----BUT, with a female leader / hero.)
Public Enemies (set in 1930s; about gangsters)
Mary, Queen of Scots (1971; one of my all-time favorites)
The Queen (the events surrounding Princess Diana's death; probably already saw it, though)
Marie Antoinette
King Arthur
Caligula (graphic violence)
The Young Victoria (Queen Victoria)
The New World (English settlement in Virginia & Pocahontas)
Elizabeth (Queen Elizabeth the FIRST)
Seabiscuit (horseracing)
Parkland (recounting of JFK's assassination)
JFK
Cleopatra (Elizabeth Taylor)
Secretariat (horseracing)
The Iron Lady (with Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher)
The Good Shepherd (history of the CIA)
The Crucible (Salem witch trials)
W.E. (Wallis Simpson and King Edward, VIII)

(If you hadn't noticed, I'm WILD about kings and queens!)





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pcgoblin
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18 May 2015, 2:07 pm

I think The Queen makes a nice companion to The King's Speech as they are about the same family from two points in time.

The Imitation Game
.

Hope and Glory is an excellent film about a British family at the start and during WWII. It is not strictly historical, but it has a really nice sense of the time and the writer/director John Boorman lived through that period.



AspieUtah
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18 May 2015, 2:17 pm

Campin_Cat wrote:
Titanic (probably already saw it)
Joan of Arc (with Leelee Sobieski; one of my all-time favorites; about war----BUT, with a female leader / hero.)
Public Enemies (set in 1930s; about gangsters)
Mary, Queen of Scots (1971; one of my all-time favorites)
The Queen (the events surrounding Princess Diana's death; probably already saw it, though)
Marie Antoinette
King Arthur
Caligula (graphic violence)
The Young Victoria (Queen Victoria)
The New World (English settlement in Virginia & Pocahontas)
Elizabeth (Queen Elizabeth the FIRST)
Seabiscuit (horseracing)
Parkland (recounting of JFK's assassination)
JFK
Cleopatra (Elizabeth Taylor)
Secretariat (horseracing)
The Iron Lady (with Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher)
The Good Shepherd (history of the CIA)
The Crucible (Salem witch trials)
W.E. (Wallis Simpson and King Edward, VIII)

(If you hadn't noticed, I'm WILD about kings and queens!)

All great historical films. I would add:

Amadeus
Braveheart
Dr. Strangelove
Gandhi
John Adams
Lawrence of Arabia
The Patriot
Schindler's List
Trinity and Beyond


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AnonymousAnonymous
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18 May 2015, 3:35 pm

We already own a copy of Titanic and a copy of Dr. Strangelove.

The Imitation Game
While my sister is a fan of Benedict Cumberbatch, she sees this movie as another reason to call we Aspies as various forms of LGBT, given the fact she herself is a homophobe. After she saw this, she began accusing me of being gay, when I am not.

Dallas Buyers Club
My sister did not like this movie at all, but she did like Jared Leto's performance as the transwoman Rayon.

The Queen
My sister is not a fan of Helen Mirren, so I may rule this out.


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BigCheeto
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18 May 2015, 3:59 pm

Maybe you can get a documentary of Temple Grandin, if she is interested in that sort of thing. Or maybe look into Around the World in 80 Days. Otherwise I can't help you on this one. :?



naturalplastic
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18 May 2015, 7:41 pm

Even if you're not a war buff I recommend seeing George C. Scott as 'Patton'.

Kate Blanchett was a great Queen Elizabeth I.

For a nice little romantic comedy period piece I recommend "Shakespeare in Love".

There are many good biopics.

Leonardo Di Caprio was great as Howard Hughes.



justkillingtime
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18 May 2015, 8:12 pm

There is a lot she does not like. What time periods and historical figures does she have some interest in?


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AnonymousAnonymous
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19 May 2015, 2:12 pm

My sister says that she has an interest in art history, mainly because she likes art {hasn't specified what type} and that she wants to work for the Portland Art Museum as a tour guide.


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justkillingtime
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19 May 2015, 3:55 pm

The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965)
Lust for Life (1956)
Moulin Rouge (1952) with Jose Ferrer

I second the suggestion of Amadeus

Something not art history but history is
Oppenheimer with Sam Waterston by the BBC (1982) (mini-series)

Good luck, AnonymousAnonymous!


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