Combat pour la justice

While the story of the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia Tribunal, and of Louise Arbour's work at it as Prosecutor, is exciting, interesting and highly relevant, this film does it no justice. On the plus side, it does contain archival material and some location shots, which contributes to authenticity. The courtrooms themselves are accurately represented, as are -- mostly -- courtroom proceedings, in as far as they are seen. It is also clear that the case files were consulted when writing the script. However, the film is, regrettably, also replete with ludicrous mistakes and misconstruals, poor acting and clichés. Just some examples -- and as these might be budget-related problems, they are the most innocuous -- the same trio of generals turn up to plague the brave prosecutor both in the field and at NATO HQ; the same guards seem to be on duty all the time and at all trials; and one and the same interpreter seems to be at work 24/7, working from and into all languages known to man. Procedural and factual errors also abound, a Russian-speaking woman is passed off as a Croat, and there is a good helping of soppiness to boot. Watch this film only if you can't be bothered reading a good book on the subject.

this was a thoughtful and well-shot and directed TV movie that took on a huge subject with precision and intelligence, and gives it a film treatment that would look great on a bigger screen -- the palette is a little muted for TV. if you're looking for a war action film or "bosnia lite", this isn't for you -- it's about an ordinary woman who took on an extraordinary challenge for humanity. if you want to learn more about the conflict and how the work of one woman influenced the world in a massive way, watch this film when it comes your way. i don't see that a lot of other TV films have dealt with the issue of genocide and ethnic hatred at this level. the story avoids obvious demonization of "the bad guys", and instead shows the denial and everyday hatred that resulted in deaths of thousands. i was moved at several points, and not in some manipulative Hollywood way with driving music and flashy mise-en-scene, but allowed to discover the horror and implications along with the characters. this is a film brave enough to let the content speak for itself, and keep the visuals understated to support it with dignity.

the actors do a helluva job at bringing the intense dramatic scenes to life. the scenes where victims give their testimony before the war tribunal are powerful, and Wendy Crewson, Stipe Erceg and Heino Ferch are excellent. William Hurt's British accent is awful -- no one else has given him a chance to play a Brit, and when he finally has it, he blows it! -- and although John Corbett's body was born to play a soldier/commando, he's a little too gee-whiz nice, although he does a good job.

Thank God I was not operating any heavy machinery, it could have been an even worst disaster. Shots were slow & very repetitive. Different scenes, same shots, medium shot, medium shot, medium shot, snooze. Story line was rather empty. William Hurt was the worst. Where did he get that stupid accent from? Random shots of scenery just to include them really didn't add much. There were more shots of Arbour traveling in her car than anything else. The direction really didn't take us into any of the scenes & it also didn't make me feel for any of the characters. I would have rated it a zero if IMDb had the option. Great sedative if you can't sleep. There went 2 hours of my life I will never get back.

I found this movie to be educational, entertaining and very moving. I was impressed when I learned of just how much Justice Arbour had contributed in during her time in Kosovo.

Wendy Crewson is highly under rated and it is good to see her again in a Canadian production. Other easily recognizable stars are Leslie Hope (24) and John Corbett (Sex in the City.)

While the story line of this movie may not be completely factual it did leave me with the desire to learn more about the word of Arbour. A great movie for inspiring young women.

I say the movie is a "must see."

Hunt for Justice is about the setup of Slobadon Milosevic for his trial in the Hague. While it was a little too clinical in presentation the subject matter could have gotten very depressing very quickly. A Canadian Judge, Louise Arbour, becomes the Chief War Crimes Prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for the UN in Yugoslavia. She battles everyone to pull out the evidence that sent Milosevic to trial. Not a bad docu-drama with class A directing and production work. The 'evidence' was disturbing by the shear discussion of the facts, happily they didn't go into too much detail and no real pictures of the tortured.