Shake Hands with the Devil (2007)

55% of critics liked it
(11 reviews)
88% of users liked it
(4,138 ratings)

Director Roger Spottiswoode brings a very special film realization of the acclaimed best-seller by General Roméo Dallaire to the screen in "Shake Hands with the Devil," the story of a Canadian commander torn between his duty and his conscience when he finds himself eyewitness to hell on Earth. In… More Director Roger Spottiswoode brings a very special film realization of the acclaimed best-seller by General Roméo Dallaire to the screen in "Shake Hands with the Devil," the story of a Canadian commander torn between his duty and his conscience when he finds himself eyewitness to hell on Earth. In 1993, the United Nations dispatches Lieutenant-General Roméo Dallaire (Roy Dupuis) to far off Rwanda to oversee a fragile cease-fire. A brilliant, workaholic officer and charismatic commander, Dallaire encounters the shabby reality of a typical UN peacekeeping operation: under-funded, overbureaucratic, and cobbled together from military units from dozens of countries, each with a slightly different agenda. Meanwhile, the peace agreement between the rebels, led by the minority Tutsi ethnic group, and the French-supported government dominated by the Hutu majority group, turns out to rest on shaky ground. When an unknown group shoots down the Rwandan President's plane, the storm breaks and a secret but long-planned genocidal campaign against the Tutsi minority begins with a night of terror in Kigali. A reporter (Deborah Unger) remains in-country and follows General Dellaire as he is forced to deal with far-away superiors and the studied indifference of the world's great powers while trying to take decisive action to stop the genocide of over 800,000 innocent civilians. --© Regent Releasing

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 53 min.
Directed By: Roger Spottiswoode
Genres: Drama

In Theaters: Oct 29, 2010 Limited
On DVD: Jan 11, 2011
Studio: Regent Releasing/here! Films

Critic Reviews

Stephen Holden, New York Times
The best that can be said of the film is that it is an honorable dud.
Ernest Hardy, Village Voice
Though the film, based on Dallaire's memoir, can veer toward deification of the general, it's hugely effective in illustrating the grotesque power plays that led to the deaths of more than 800,000 Tutsis.
Peter Howell, Toronto Star
Gets [close] to the heart of the matter.
Scott Foundas, Variety
[Director] Spottiswoode's lackluster film fails to offer any fresh perspective on these now well-known events.
Michael Rechtshaffen, Hollywood Reporter
Despite being filmed in many of those actual Rwandan locations, Shake Hands with the Devil is frustratingly distancing.
Keith Uhlich, Time Out New York
Dallaire's stalwart stoicism offsets the horrors on display, which are filmed with expectedly solemn slickness.
Joseph Jon Lanthier, Slant Magazine
What ultimately characterizes Shake Hands with the Devil is its cumbersome sense of contrition, but the film seems only foggily aware of what its apologizing for.
S. James Wegg, JWR
Then as now, the world recoils as the various documentations of those horrors become available for all who wish to see.
Liz Braun, Jam! Movies
The filmmaking is a bit scrappy. Still, it's worth seeing.
Brian Webster, Apollo Guide
Beautifully filmed, brutally frank, and forceful in its political message - in support of active peacekeeping - this is a powerful film that's not to be missed.
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews
...suffers from a vibe of familiarity that ultimately prevents it from making any kind of a real impact.

Read all 11 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

familiar s

The name itself is so attractive!!! I've a weak spot for "The Devil's Backbone", "The Devil Wears Prada", "The Devil's Advocate", etc. movies that have the word 'devil' in their title. Even though I may end up being disappointed… More
The name itself is so attractive!!! I've a weak spot for "The Devil's Backbone", "The Devil Wears Prada", "The Devil's Advocate", etc. movies that have the word 'devil' in their title. Even though I may end up being disappointed by the movie, they're a 'must watch if available' for me and I just can't ignore them for long. Isn't it ironical that one of the world's most peaceful and innocent person likes movies that include such a word in it???!!! A good but not-so-great movie about the unfortunate Rwandan Genocide. The movie shows how a General is nothing but a puppet whose strings are moved as per his Major's wishes. It displays the helplessness of a man to help others only because he hasn't received the necessary 'orders'. Though their army is equipped, its hands are tied by the "Shoot only when you're shot at" type of orders that leave them almost defenseless. Hats off (okay, just noticed that I'm not wearing even a single hat right now, so postponing the 'hats off' act until unmentioned time) to those who can keep their cool even under such stressful conditions. I wish I could borrow a bit of it.