Shooting Dogs

Though it covers much of the same ground as last year’s Hotel Rwanda, Shooting Dogs is an equally effective look at the genocidal events that occurred in South Africa in the mid-’90s. The story revolves around a priest (John Hurt) and a teacher (Hugh Dancy) at a Rwandan secondary school, where hundreds of Tutsis are forced to take refuge after the ruling Hutus declare war. Director Michael Caton-Jones imbues Shooting Dogs with an understated, thoroughly matter-of-fact sense of style that quickly proves to be an ideal match for David Wolstencroft’s uncompromising screenplay, which effectively captures the horror and brutality of the situation. However, the film’s treatment of Dancy’s character – who goes from wide-eyed optimist to grizzled pessimist – comes off as somewhat less-than-subtle, although the same could be said of Don Cheadle’s arc in Hotel Rwanda. And while the film’s emotional impact is hindered by the familiarity of the story, the strong performances (Hurt, in particular) and heart-wrenching conclusion more than make up for the sporadic deficiencies.

***1/2 out of ****