There are two aspects of this film which I found very disturbing. The first is horrifying, but important to portray because of its truth. That was a scene near the end that depicts one of the protagonists being raped, beaten and mutilated. Rape and sexual mutilation are among the most common war crimes. So though the scene will be very hurtful for rape and abuse survivors, it is important for those who have never considered the impact of these crimes to know what happens to people.
What I found troubling about the film was the sympathetic depiction (yet again in modern cinema) of "mercy killing." In another scene, when the character of Bernard finds his beloved disfigured and ill with AIDS, he "fulfills a promise" she exacted before the war by suffocating her.
It seems the Brave New Solution to emotional pain and disability is death; whether it's "Million Dollar Baby," "The Sea Inside," or now "Un dimanche à Kigali." Yet people with disabilities, who are more prone to being abused and who live with disfiguring conditions, object to the idea that it's better to be dead than disabled.
My experience of the film was both personal and political. As a person who survived sexual violence, I found the rape and mutilation scene terrifying and brutal, but appropriate. But as a person with disabilities, one of which is disfiguring, I found the mercy killing scene chilling and horrific, and unnecessary.
What I found troubling about the film was the sympathetic depiction (yet again in modern cinema) of "mercy killing." In another scene, when the character of Bernard finds his beloved disfigured and ill with AIDS, he "fulfills a promise" she exacted before the war by suffocating her.
It seems the Brave New Solution to emotional pain and disability is death; whether it's "Million Dollar Baby," "The Sea Inside," or now "Un dimanche à Kigali." Yet people with disabilities, who are more prone to being abused and who live with disfiguring conditions, object to the idea that it's better to be dead than disabled.
My experience of the film was both personal and political. As a person who survived sexual violence, I found the rape and mutilation scene terrifying and brutal, but appropriate. But as a person with disabilities, one of which is disfiguring, I found the mercy killing scene chilling and horrific, and unnecessary.