Review: Defiance is a powerful drama
January 21st, 2009 at 8:40 am by Laff at the Movies under Entertainment
“Defiance” is a powerful drama based on the true story of three brothers who set out to defy the Nazis by living out their lives with some sense of normalcy.
Movies set during World War II and the Holocaust are depressing by nature… because of the inhumanity of the Nazis in their persecution of Jews. While “Defiance” is sad, it sets the mood and then keeps it there without constantly attacking you with reminders of movie’s time in history.
Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, and Jamie Bell are great as the three brothers who band together to escape the Nazis and ultimately form their own community of survivors.
While this may not be the best Holocaust-era movie ever, it is certainly the most uplifting as the brothers battle the Nazis both literally in battle and figuratively as they try to keep their sanity and humanity by living out their lives, even if they are in hiding.
The movie weaves in a sense of history while exploring a part of the survivor story many of us had never heard of before now… the settings, the clothing, the weapons, the vehicles, the characters, everything helps remind you that you watching people in the late 1930s/early 1940s.
The action is spread out throughout the movie… followed by moments of dialougue and character building. Daniel Craig puts in one of his best non-Bond performances yet as the oldest of the brothers, leading the group through the forest and through the very difficult circumstances. Liev Schreiber does and excellent job as the second oldest brother, a character layered with problems and regrets and disagreements with his older brother. Jamie Bell is solid as the third brother and the other supporting cast are also good, including a solid turn by Ravil Isyanov as the Russian commander who comes into conflict with their little community.
THE BOTTOM LINE: The acting is good, the story is well told, while the story is memorable, there are a few weaker moments in the storyline and Hollywood-ized moments, and it never jumps to the “great” level overall… like Steven Spielberg’s “Schindler’s List” (1993)… so I give it a respectable 8.0 out of 10.
“Defiance”
(2009) (rated: ) (2 hr, 17 min)
Starring: Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, Jamie Bell, Alexa Davalos, Allan Corduner, Mark Feuerstein, Tomas Arana, Iben Hjejle, Ravil Isyanov, George MacKay
Director: Edward Zwick
Genre: Drama/War/Holocaust
The Plot: Three Jewish brothers escape from Nazi-occupied Poland into the Belarussian forest, where they join Russian resistance fighters and endeavor to build a village in order to protect themselves and others in danger.
So what did you think? Please post a comment!
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“Defiance” poster courtesy Paramount Vantage
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Tags: Daniel Craig, Defiance, Holocaust, Jamie Bell, Laff at the Movies, Liev Schreiber, movie, movies, review, World War II
Aaron Lafferty covers the film industry. Favorite movies include Star Wars, Indiana Jones, The Matrix, Clear and Present Danger, Tombstone, Rounders, Enemy of the State, Rear W...
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I agree that this is a movie to see. ed Zwick’s accomplishments with Blood Diamond and others would suggest that anyway. Unfortunately, this movie is not getting the advertising that it deserves. I have seen few commercials for it and when you go to the GR Press, they don’t even have a movie picture by the movie listings. Because of that it’s no wonder it pulled in less than 10 mil in it’s first week.
The level of acting talent alone would be a reason to see it1
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