This film relates the stories of five women who survived the Rwandan genocide. The filmmakers wisely keep themselves out of the picture and instead let the women tell their stories in their own words. Their experiences were so horrific that it's hard to watch without crying. Yet there's nothing self-pitying in their words-- what happened, happened, and now they must go on as best as they can. All of these women are courageous, but I was most affected by the words of a young girl who became the head of her family at the age of 12 after her parents were killed. In the years since the genocide, she has devoted herself to caring for her younger siblings. At the film's end, she reflects, "I don't think my parents would be happy to see me (spending her young life raising her brothers and sisters). But I think they would be proud."
"God Sleeps in Rwanda" is far and away the strongest nominee for Best Documentary Short Subject for 2005.
"God Sleeps in Rwanda" is far and away the strongest nominee for Best Documentary Short Subject for 2005.