57
Metascore
8 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 80Los Angeles TimesKevin ThomasLos Angeles TimesKevin ThomasA quietly powerful, incisive portrait of Canadian Lt. Gen. Roméo Dallarme (Roy Dupuis), who was sent to Rwanda in 1993 on a peacekeeping mission as the ruling Hutu attacked the rebel Tutsi, yet he was hobbled by the U.N. leadership and faced with the indifference of the world's superpowers.
- 80Village VoiceErnest HardyVillage VoiceErnest HardyThough the film, based on Dallaire's memoir, can veer toward deification of the general, it's hugely effective.
- 75New York PostLou LumenickNew York PostLou LumenickCompelling documentary.
- 70NPRMark JenkinsNPRMark JenkinsBack in Canada, Dallaire tells a psychiatrist that he remembers Rwanda in flashbacks that are "not like memories at all." Shake Hands with the Devil captures something of that sensation; it's a depiction of events that are too painful to remember, too essential to forget.
- 60New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierNew York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierSpottiswoode relays this tragic story with respect and sadness. But Michael Donovan's script is stuffed with clichés, and Dupuis is unable to convey the depth of Dallaire's emotions.
- 60Time OutKeith UhlichTime OutKeith UhlichFor everything admirable, like the way female Prime Minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana (the wonderful Gakire) resigns herself to a violent death, there's a heavy-handed metaphor-a cute gaggle of orphaned goats-ready to smack away the intelligence.
- 50VarietyScott FoundasVarietyScott FoundasSpottiswoode's lackluster film fails to offer any fresh perspective on these now well-known events.
- 30The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenFilmed in Rwanda, Shake Hands With the Devil is certainly panoramic. But the best that can be said of the film is that it is an honorable dud.