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Review: 'Hotel Rwanda' amazing, gripping
Standout acting performances in important film

(CNN) -- During 100 terrifying days in 1994, nearly 1 million people died in a horrific genocide in the African country of Rwanda, as the ruling members of the Hutu tribe began a calculated effort to wipe out the Tutsi minority.

This unholy act of inhumanity was compounded by the fact that the world stood silently by and did nothing to intervene.

The film "Hotel Rwanda" is based on an actual event that occurred during that terrible time, the attempt of one man -- a hotel manager named Paul Rusesabagina -- to save as many people as possible. The film is not only one of the best movies of the year; it is also probably the most important movie of the year.

Rusesabagina, played magnificently by Don Cheadle, managed to save the lives of 1,268 people as he risked everything in an uncommon act of courage. (The hotelier, who's still alive, served as a consultant to the movie.)...