‘Trees of Peace' on Netflix, A Beautiful Movie About The resilience of Rwandan Women
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Loading... - Paula Haji
- 04 Aug 2022
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TREES OF PEACE: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
The Gist: In the midst of the 1994 Rwandan genocide that pitted Hutu and Tutsi sects against one another and killed over 1 million people, four women of different walks of life hide in an underground crawlspace. The women — one moderate Hutu, one Tutsi, one nun, and one American Peace Corps-type visitor — battle each other, question one another’s beliefs, and ultimately form a strong bond as they remain captive for 80-some days.
What Will It Remind You Of?: You can think of Trees of Peace as the flip side of Hotel Rwanda — the 2004 film centered on a Hutu man hiding refugees in his hotel, while this 2021 film focuses on those hiding inside.
Performance Worth Watching: Trees of Peace boasts a strong ensemble cast, but Bola Koleosho as the hot-headed Tutsi girl Mutesi stands out as the most dynamic. She is programmed to hate Annick, the moderate Hutu, blaming her and her people for the genocide despite Annick showering her with love and acceptance. In one particular scene where she spitefully and ravenously eats more than her share of the rations, Koleosho commands the screen and pushes buttons that we didn’t even know existed.
Memorable Dialogue: “I don’t want to die with this anger,” Mutesi says to Annick at a turning point in their friendship that finally allows Mutesi to accept that people and situations are not always balck-and-white.
Sex and Skin: None.
