Thanks for all the rates - if you read one of my reviews, then I will return the favour! Would appr...
Thanks for all the rates - if you read one of my reviews, then I will return the favour! Would appreciate any reads of my Flashforward review - it came through too fast!
Member since:10.01.2009
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Defiance (2008)
I went to the video shop and the first film that I saw was Defiance, which I had seen trailers for at the cinema. I was especially interested as I knew that it was based upon a true story.
Basic Plot
The plot centres upon brothers who have hidden out within the Belarussian forests; they are Jews who are trying to survive as the Nazi invasion progresses and friends and members of their family are killed. At first they are alone, but are very quickly joined by other Jews seeking refuge withing the cover of the forest. The eldest brothers Tuvia (Daniel Craig) and Zus (Liev Schreiber) are soon at logger heads over the fact that food is short, but the community is growing. Tuvia is of the mind that they should take in anyone seeking shelter - Zus is more concerned with fighting the Germans and collaborators and seeking revenge. What starts out as just a couple of men quickly turns into a community trying to defy the Germans by staying alive.
Main Cast
Daniel Craig - Tuvia Bielski Liev Schreiber - Zus Bielski Jamie Bell - Asael Bielski Alexa Davalos - Lilka Ticktin George
MacKay - Aron Bielski Allan Corduner - Shamon Haretz
Director - Edward Zwick
Acting
The acting was of a good standard, in particular I was impressed with Daniel Craig who portrayed this man well with the same intensity he would display in certain Bond scenes. I wasn't quite sure about English spoken with the native tongue, in moments of high drama I felt that the English accent took over. However have to say that when subtitles were used and Daniel Craig spoke in the native tongue it sounded extremely fluent (although I am not sure if it was Russian or Polish that was spoken - perhaps someone more knowledeable will be able to answer this. This was a man who made some very difficult decisions to enable the group to stay safe and evade the Germans for as long as possible.
Liev Schreiber who played Zus Bielski was also very convincing as a grief stricken son and husband, who bravely wanted to join up with the Russians and fight against the Germans. The scenes were he disagreed and fell out with his brother were also very well acted.
Soundtrack
The use of violings and clarinets evoked bittersweet emotions during moments of sadness to good effect. It was also used in an upbeat way during a wedding, contrasted against the rebels fighting the Germans.
Location
The locations used were stunning, in particular the winter scenes with mist and snow were very atmospheric. The forest settings were beautiful and were filmed in Lithuania about 100 miles away from the true location of the community. A small point but perhaps it was too beautiful and pretty; I didn't quite get the feeling of true suffering or illness etc, that must have existed at this time. In this respect it did feel like a serious story set in a beautiful Hollywood setting - kind of like war taking place in the type of setting people would pay to visit for a outward bound holiday. Yes the cinematography was stunning, but for me it did not add to the realism.
Overall Opnion
The first thing to say is that you need to be prepared to watch this kind of film; it requires concentration and it is a film that of course will not amuse, but is more likely to educate and give people an understanding of what it must of been like to hide and try to evade the Nazi in very difficult conditions.
I am always surprised by films such as this and Schindler's List; I am surprised that stories such as these, that are stories that matter and illustrate how people pull together and fight against the odds, remain relatively unknown for such a long period of time. For me, stories based in fact are so much more compelling than any story that is fictional. Seeing the film has made me want to read the book to find out more. I say this because if it is really all true in fact, then it is a very remarkable story.
The fight scenes were not glorified and illustrated the how frightening living through this time must have been. Whilst I enjoyed the film and the story very much, I didn't find it quite as well put together as Schindler's List or as deeply moving, in which I felt you got to know many different characters and their stories. For example perhaps the character Daniel Craig played was just a little too aloof; I don't think you really got an insight into how deeply the situation would have affected him. This is more a criticism of the script rather than the portrayal. I would also say it was around 15 minutes too long and it got off to a bit of a slow start, especially when it came to introducing us to the main characters, I think a little more detail as to what life was like for the brothers before the war started, would have also added to the story.
I did think the film was worth a watch, but I am not sure that I would invest in buying it, for me watching it on rental was enough. Overall, I will give it four out of five, which I think is generous, but I do think that it is a necessity that stories such as these are brought to the masses, so that is the reason for my highish rating.
Extra Features
There was an audio commentary
Return to the forest - the story of how the film came to be made
General Info
Certificate 15.
131 minutes.
Studio - Momentum Pictures Home Entertainment
Availability
It is available from Amazon for £10.98 as it was only released on the 18th May.
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Pictures of Defiance (DVD)
Defiance (DVD)
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congratulations on your short-and-good award! (I know I rated you before, but I just wanted to add a "Well done")
. . . ♥ jes ♥
sunnyfox 18.08.2009 00:44
Good review. I haven't seen this one. :)
susan1967 16.08.2009 22:50
I enjoyed this film, I have watched a lot of Nazi/Holocaust ones lately and think it captured the desolation and resistance felt by the people involved. Very moving. xx
Advantages: Based on a remarkable true story. Strong convincing acting. The soundtrack. Disadvantages: Deviates from the true story a mite too much. Cliched scenes.
MAFARRIMOND 20.06.2009 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Defiance (DVD)
Aug 10th, 2009
exceptional by (4%):
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