Defiance

Daniel Craig gives perhaps his most memorable performance as Tuvia Beilski, one of three Jewish brothers who escape from a Nazi-Occupied Poland and take up residence in a Belarussian forest.  Once there, Tuvia and his brothers Zus (Liev Schreiber) and Asael (Jamie Bell) find several Jews in hiding.  Tuvia, Zus, and Asael take in these Jews, giving them their first taste of true freedom.  Zus, however, has some problems with Tuvia’s leadership ability, so for most of the movie, Zus is with a group of Russians who are preparing to fight against the Nazi.  Tuvia and Asael however, stay behind to help the Jews that they have taken in to rebuild their lives.  As the movie progresses, the brothers soon find out that above all, that which you can not afford to lose is hope.  This movie, in a word, was excellent.  My analysis is below, here is the theatrical one-sheet from the film:

The Theatrical One-Sheet for Defiance

I believe that based on your interest level in certain subjects, there are some films that you need to see.  For instance, if you like action movies, I’d venture to guess that you’d like films like the Transporter series, the Terminator saga, or any James Bond film.  If you are a history buff, however, this movie, which is based on a true story is, for history buffs, a must see.  I believe that Daniel Craig’s performance is going to solidify him as an actor, as opposed to the man who just does a Bond film every four or five years.  Furthermore, I think this is a must see for the sheer fact that it is a story of determination and survival.  The only negative thing that I’d say about the film is its length.  At 2 hrs and 17 minutes, it is a bit long.  I will say however, that in a historical period movie, as this one is, its often necessary for the film to be this long, because how does a director choose what parts of the true story to cut out?  All in all, I think this is one of the best films of 2009, and I’d give it 4.8 out of 5 stars.