On National Canadian Film Day, we look back at a groundbreaking documentary that feels just as important today as it was 20 years ago, in time for the central figure Roméo Dallaire's in-person talk at Hot Docs.

In 1994, one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century unfolded when nearly 800,000 men, women and children were killed in the Rwandan genocide.

This documentary tells the story of Roméo Dallaire, a Canadian general in charge of the UN's unsuccessful peacekeeping mission in the country prior to the killings. Returning to the nation for the first time in 10 years, Dallaire recalls his painful memories of the event and wonders if he might have been able to stop it. 

"In a way, Shake Hands with the Devil puts the best of Western conscience on display—and it's not a pretty sight" (Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News).

"A tragic reminder of how that overused epithet, 'Never again', makes hypocrites of us all" (Jamie Woolley, BBC).

"Shake Hands With the Devil is best understood as a testimony and a warning" (Liam Lacey, The Globe and Mail).

National Canadian Film Day is a massive, one-day coast-to-coast-to-coast celebration of Canadian cinema!

Tickets: FREE