I was expecting more of an action flick, from the title, (the original title was far better!) but was by the end relieved that it was not. Instead it deals with the human face of the incident, focusing on guests of various nationalities and backgrounds thrown together in a terrible, tense situation, and (to a lesser degree) the ideals and motivation of the gunmen involved.
The acting was excellent, the atmosphere and tension was at times nail biting, and the special / visual FX were ... well, adequate. Due to the budget, there were no massive set- pieces, amd while there was one or two ropey effects, this was mostly avoided by not aiming for gory, graphic thrills, but by adhering to the 'less is more' mantra... which in this case, it certainly was. And (thankfully is the wrong word... bravely...?) the film makers did not go for a saccharine- sweet ending, but rather one that haunted me for a long time after the film ended.
My only main criticisms would be that the filom was maybe 20 minutes too long, and also, seemingly contradictory, that I would have liked to see how the siege actually ended, and maybe some information on the other attacks that happened
concurrently.
I would really highly recommend this film to anyone that isn't looking for a 'Die Hard with a Turban' film, or a feelgood, whitewashed version of the events...
Oh, hell, even if you are (after all, I was!), try it anyway. You will be surprised!
