Posted on 01/19/2009 5:51:28 PM PST by Ooh-Ah
(CNN) -- The question of Jewish resistance to the Nazis -- or the lack of it -- has loomed large ever since the true extent of the horrors of the Holocaust became impossible to ignore.
Liev Schreiber, left, and Daniel Craig play Jewish resistance fighters in the World War II drama "Defiance."
As early as 1940 and 1942, Charlie Chaplin and Ernst Lubitsch fashioned satiric fantasies in which Adolf Hitler was comically humiliated by Jews (a barber in Chaplin's "The Great Dictator" and a hammy actor in Lubitsch's "To Be or Not to Be").
More recently, Steven Spielberg and Roman Polanski presented authentic stories of Jewish Holocaust survivors in "Schindler's List" and "The Pianist."
In "Defiance," Edward Zwick tells the true story of the Bielski brothers, Tuvia (Daniel Craig), Zus (Liev Schreiber) and Asael (Jamie Bell).
When the Germans and local collaborators started rounding up Jews in what was then Belorussia in 1941, murdering thousands -- including the Bielskis' parents -- the three men took refuge in the woods.
They evaded capture, scavenged, begged or stole the food they needed; they set up a camp and saved hundreds of fellow refugees -- and they fought back. Video Watch the stars of "Defiance" talk about the film »
It's a remarkable story, one that should have inspired a more exciting and original movie than this sluggish compendium of earnest debates and hackneyed battle scenes.
The timing is unfortunate. For a story that has gone neglected for the best part of 60 years, this is hardly the ideal week to be extolling heroic Jewish resistance fighters. Ari Folman's angst-laden nonfiction animated film, "Waltz With Bashir," is altogether more relevant.
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(Excerpt) Read more at edition.cnn.com ...
The timing is unfortunate. For a story that has gone neglected for the best part of 60 years, this is hardly the ideal week to be extolling heroic Jewish resistance fighters.
Pish-tosh. Every week is the ideal to week to extol heroic Jewish resistance fighters. (Whether it's a well-done movie or not is a different issue. Vladimir Putin as Tuvia Bielski just doesn't work for me.)
Why? They have a problem with resisting evil?
CNN is full of crap. Excellent movie every Freeper should see. NEVER AGAIN! (And I’m not Jewish!)
Daniel Craig played a Jewish fighter (assassin actually) in Speilberg’s ‘Munich” so this is not a stretch. Quote by his character: “Don’t F*** with the Jews!”
I guess we have to expect this from the anti-semitic bigots at CNN.
Sounds like a good one. They need to make a movie about the Lehi, Stern Gang, in Israel in the 40’s. Would be some good plot twists considering they wanted to help the Nazi’s get the jews out of Germany, in exchange for Nazi assistance to rid Palestine of the Brits.
They should have waited a few months until His Excellency and Hamas finished the job Hitler started. According to CNN it is only acceptable to support dead Jews.
If it annoys CNN, then I am going to see it. I wanted to see the film anyway, but I now have further incentive to do so.
The saddest thing about this bit of CNN anti-semitic stupidity is that by their standards there has never been a good time for a story of heroic Jews who don't do what CNN would like to see the Jews doing ... walking meekly into the ovens and gas chambers. The Jews have had a rough 70 years, even by the standards of their history, and CNN is there to make sure it doesn't improve. [And, no, I'm not Jewish either; I just despise evil when I see it.]
Oh, stuff it Tom, you bore.
I totally agree, if it pisses off CNN, the box office will have my money for this film next weekend. And then I’ll tell all my friends to go see it...
I was going to add a pithy reply but fortunately I read yours first. So I will just say *ping* to #10.
Are there any illusions about the battle lines any more, FRiends?
> Zwick’s Hollywood liberal credentials are not in doubt, but his films have a surprisingly gung-ho undercurrent (they include such martial adventures as “The Last Samurai,” “Glory,” “The Siege,” “Legends of the Fall” and “Courage Under Fire”).
CNN hates it...a lib director’s gung ho attitude..I’m in!
Now I will pony up some dough and see this movie for sure.
“Cast a Giant Shadow” with Kirk Douglas is another very timely movie these days:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060218/
No, nice tagline!
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