Sometimes In April

I would first like to recognize Edmund Burke as the author of my Title. The number of words allowed in that field prevented me from crediting the author in that field and I did not wish to paraphrase his words to fit the acknowledgement.

When I watch a film like Sometimes in April or Schindler's List, I am reminded of an old quote that I first read when watching a documentary on Jim Jones' Guyana: Cult of the Damned. The words were an ominous warning of the tragedy that would befall that community, and a reminder to those of us who witnessed those events through the media. The words are attributed to the philosopher George Santayana:

Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

This movie was written about true events, so the power of the events are moving enough. But bringing dialogue to a plot that has already been written through actual events can be a true challenge. HBO Films set out to meet this challenge and did an excellent job. This movie doesn't have the range of emotions of Schindler's List, but it has the human tragedy of genocide at every turn. It is a stark reminder of the power of man to inflict atrocities on his brother, while other men look on and do nothing. I remember when these events were unfolding in the news, and we basically stood by and did nothing. I know that the United States can not police the world. But I felt helpless as the genocide spread and it seemed no one could make a decision. The dialogue is in this movie is rich and believable. They wrap this historic saga around the lives of two brothers who were involved in those events putting a face (or faces) on the conflict.

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