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Shake Hands with the Devil (2007) -- Trailer for this historical drama
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Overview

User Rating:
8.1/10   1,028 votes
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Director:
Roger Spottiswoode
Writers:
Roméo Dallaire (book)
Michael Donovan (writer)
Contact:
View company contact information for Shake Hands with the Devil on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
28 September 2007 (Canada) more
Genre:
History more
Tagline:
A true story of compassion, courage and hope more
Plot:
A film adaptation of the Romeo Dallaire autobiography Shake Hands with the Devil. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
6 wins & 12 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(6 articles)
Shake Hands With the Devil Trailer
 (From Beyond Hollywood. 16 November 2009, 8:37 AM, PST)
Indie Trailer Sunday: Shake Hands with the Devil Trailer
 (From FirstShowing.net. 15 November 2009, 8:45 AM, PST)
User Comments:
A scathing indictment of the diplomacy of indifference more (14 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Roy Dupuis ... General Romeo Dallaire
Owen Sejake ... Ghanian General Henry Anyidoho (as Owen Lebakeng Sejake)

James Gallanders ... Major Brent Beardsley
Michel Mongeau ... Luc Marchal
Robert Lalonde ... Général Maurice Baril
John Sibi-Okumu ... Booh-Booh
Akin Omotoso ... Paul Kagame
Tom McCamus ... Phil Lancaster
John Matshikiza ... President Habyarimana
Jean-Hugues Anglade ... Bernard Kouchner
Strini Pillai ... Bangladeshi Commander
Craig Hourqueble ... Willem
Kenneth Khambula ... Major Kamenzi
Patrice Faye ... Colonel Poncet
Chris Thorne ... American Ambassador
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Additional Details

MPAA:
Rated R for some disturbing violent images and brief strong language.
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents
Runtime:
112 min
Country:
Canada
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital
Certification:
Canada:18A | Singapore:NC-16 | USA:R
Filming Locations:
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada more
Company:
Barna-Alper Productions more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Roy Dupuis collaborated significantly with Roméo Dallaire while researching this film and the two became friends. more
Goofs:
Anachronisms: At the international news report on the massacres, the modern Rwandan flag is depicted on the screen, which wasn't introduced until 2001, whereas the news report was from 1993, during the massacre. more
Quotes:
General Romeo Dallaire: We're going to stay to bear witness to what the rest of the world doesn't want to see. more

FAQ

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User Comments

   (Comment on this title)
26 out of 28 people found the following comment useful.
A scathing indictment of the diplomacy of indifference, 6 October 2007
7/10
Author: Craig McPherson from Montreal, Canada

Based on the book by the same title, Shake Hands with the Devil chronicles the horrendous experiences of Lieutenant-General Roméo Dallaire of the Canadian Forces, who headed up the 1994 United Nations peacekeeping force in Rwanda during the outbreak of that country's genocidal civil war between rival Hutus and Tutsis.

Directed by Roger Spottiswoode, this Canadian production, filmed on location in Rwanda, serves as a scathing indictment of humanity in general, and the UN in particular, for turning a blind eye to the human carnage that took place in the former Belgian colony.

Hamstrung by UN orders not to interfere, his men given virtually no ammunition and instructed to only fire if fired upon, the movie chronicles the events that left Dallaire, a once proud and hardened career military officer, broken and teetering on the edge of a nervous breakdown.

Unlike 2004's Hotel Rwanda, which chronicled the same events through the smaller story of Paul Rusesabagina, the manager a Kigali Hotel, Shake Hands with the Devil approaches the Rwandan tragedy from a broader perspective, with mixed results. While Spottiswoode places the focus on Dallaire's experiences, which range from playing military goodwill ambassador, to struggling to find ways to protect the innocent, and playing dancing pony to insulated and indifferent UN mandarins, the scope is somewhat too broad leaving the viewer feeling like an outsider looking at a holocaust from a distance, and through bullet-proof glass. UN officials as well as diplomats from France and the US are given cursory walk-ons, with little character development nor insight into their short-sighted actions. Instead, the audience is almost expected to approach this film with prior background knowledge about events leading up to the genocide. Without trying to appear insensitive, as a viewer, a better result might have been yielded if some of the copious screen time devoted to images of Dallaire and his men wading through bodies had instead been given to a closer examination of the motives (or lack thereof) behind the Rwandan abandonment on the part the UN and its principal movers and shakers.

On the plus side, Dupuis' portrayal of Dallaire is among the most eerily accurate renditions by an actor in quite some time. Not only do the two share a striking resemblance, but Dupuis seems to almost become the General in every aspect of his being. As a Canadian familiar with the sight of Dallaire in news reports and interviews, Dupuis' performance is nothing short of impressive.

Though flawed, Shake Hands with the Devil is still a powerful and must see film. As Dallaire himself says to his men, "we will stay to bear witness to that which the world does not want to see". If nothing else, that alone is reason enough to make time for this film.

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