Rent Schindlers List on Amazon Video (paid link) // Buy the book (paid link)
Written by: Thomas Keneally (book), Steven Zaillian (screenplay)
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley
Rated: R
Watch the trailer
Plot
In German-occupied Poland during World War II, industrialist Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazis.
Verdict
This is such an emotional movie. The quality and power of this movie is recognizable from the very beginning. We see the Holocaust through one man who initially seeks to profit from the war but ends up spending all of his money to save as many people as possible. On paper Schindler was a war profiteer, Nazi, and criminal. Between the lines he was so much more. It's a difficult watch, but so few movies manage to transcend
entertainment and become history; a poignant tale of oppression, defiance, and bravery.
Watch It.
Review
Polish Jews are forced to relocate to Krakow while Oskar Schindler (Liam Neeson) relocates to the city seeing a business opportunity. He's friendly with everyone, joining the Nazi party as a business man with an agenda. To get what he needs he supplicates anyone that can aid him. He's hands
off, his accountant managing the company. I suppose Schindler doesn't
care about the how as long as he makes money. He benefits from the Jews being treated poorly, forced out of their homes, and relocated to ghettos. And for what? Because the party can? Schindler gets a nice house out of it and decides to hire Jews as their wages are cheaper. He's profiting immensely from the war.
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| Liam Neeson plays Oskar Schindler |
The atrocities and the senselessness of the situation is appalling. It's not just that it happened but that people felt empowered enough to do that to other human beings. It would be unthinkable if it hadn't actually happened. Spielberg always does such a great job of choosing what to show and not. An image of a street devoid of people, luggage strewn about is a powerful implication. This is not an easy watch. So many moments are barbaric, but it's important because this happened and we're doomed to repeat history if we're not familiar with it.
Schindler reaches a point where he can no longer prioritize profit over people. He can't hide from the facts of what is happening, deciding to hire Jews to save them. The antithesis to Schindler is Amon Göth (Ralph Fiennes) who oversees the local camp. He doesn't see the sense in Schindler's plans. Schindler is desperate to save people, planning to move his operation and employees to Czech. Göth thinks it's wasteful but Schindler claims it's good business, his excuse for all of his decisions. Göth is content to ignore it because of the payouts. The divide between them is that Schindler values life. Göth only values certain life. Schindler beseeches another business to hire more employees, aware the company is already providing employee extra rations and blankets. The company refuses out of greed.
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| Liam Neeson plays Oskar Schindler |
Being filmed in black and white makes this movie period appropriate, but several scenes have a stark contrast. I can't help but think it's a clear divide between black and white, hinting at the morality at play. It couldn't be clearer that murdering people is wrong yet so many people let it happen. It wasn't just the soldiers forcing people into a concentration camp. The towns turned a blind eye, the train conductors carried people away, administrators creates ledgers and made preparations.
Throughout the movie Schindler encounters a child in a red coat. While it's overt symbolism, it also allows us to track the journey, picking out one person among the many. Her fate was no different than so many others, but through her we see what befell the average person that Schindler passed in the street. Everyone fell victim to the Nazis, directly and indirectly.
Schindler starts a munitions factory that never creates a single usable shell. He spends all of his money to keep his employees away from the camps. At one point he bragged he possessed more money than a man could spend in a lifetime. At the end of the ware he must flee, nearly broke. He spent all he had to protect his employees. He ran a munitions factory, profited on slave labor, and was a member of the Nazi party. He was a criminal, but that doesn't paint a fair portrait. He did those things but he did so much more. At the end he decries he didn't make enough money. If he had more, he could have saved more people.
The final scene of this movie, like so many in this movie, transcends the screen. We watch the Schindler Jews visit Schindler's grave. There's no music or narration, it's not necessary. It's a solemn reminder of what one man's defiance bore.
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