This is either a shining-a-light-on-a-terrible-real-life-situation movie or a lets-make-a-fuck-load-of-money-by-shining-a-light-on-a-terrible-real-life-situation movie, and frankly my dear, I don't give a damn either way.

I kept flashing on Redford's BRUBAKER, or Nicholson's THE BORDER--something that (I think) is well-intentioned and that you're sort of obligated to watch, with a few vivid moments but no real resonance. Butler's good, but this just ain't got no passion; it isn't very well made, to be honest, existing more out of obligation than any sort of filmmaker's vision.

Pretty good.

First off, let me give Butler his credit, he is great here. He might help hundreds of Sudanese children, but he can't save you from being bored while watching.

This film is terribly sincere, unfortunately it is also extraordinarily boring, especially if you don't share the somewhat unclear religious beliefs of its protagonist. The genocide in Sudan is a humanitarian crisis, but the film's unapologetic focus on the actions of a single prosletyzing American didn't work for me. The film would probably have been better without inconsequential distractions like the North American plot line and Gerard Butler's character.

Ugh.

Too bad the directing isnt top notch, as the story is.

The title makes this sound seriously bad. Guess what: it's far from it. Based on a true story, believablity is never compromised. Acting-wise, it's solid, and it offers some genuinely touching moments, Forster always remembering not to show too much for dramatic effect, the subject matter being more than shocking enough in itself. He, in other words, takes stabs at your heart without twisting the knife. So don't be expecting lots of acting, this is first and foremost a drama.