We've seen and heard the stories of Jews being spared by sympathetic Germans ("Schindler's List"), hiding throughout Europe like the underground railroad ("The Diary of Anne Frank"), and even utilizing exceptional talents to be rewarded with their lives ("The Pianist"), but Edward Zwick's new movie "Defiance" tells a story from the second world war that has often been neglected in mainstream cinema — Jews taking a stand for their freedom and fighting back against the Nazis. It is a rare and frequently disregarded storyline of World War II that has rightfully garnered attention.
Daniel Craig plays Tuvia Bielski, one of four Belarusian brothers that take to the forest in 1941 after German invaders kill their parents and most of the people they know. Zus (Liev Schreiber), the second oldest Bielski, is the most militant and vengeful of the brothers and find himself at odds with Tuvia when he forms a community of displaced Jews. Zus insists on protecting only his own and seeking revenge for his parent's murder.
The third oldest Bielski, Asael, played by the always-competent Jamie Bell, tries to find a balance between his two brothers, even as Zus chooses to leave the forest community to join forces with the Red Army. Sixteen-year-old George MacKay plays the youngest Bielski, Aron, who suffers from the trauma of witnessing his parents' death.
As Tuvia continues to build and lead this forest community, they face numerous obstacles such as hunger, disease, mutiny and attacks from German platoons, only to come back stronger after each crisis. Word of "The Great Tuvia Bielski" begins to spread around the region as Tuvia is touted a savior of the Jews, much to the chagrin of Zus.
This true story of the Bielski brothers comes from the critically acclaimed book by historian Nechama Tec called "Defiance: The Bielski Partisans." The screenplay, however, was written by Zwick and Clayton Frohman and is far from flawless. The film, while fascinating and inspiring, is chock full of Hollywood cliché. From the "holierthan thou" mentality of Tuvia, to the romantic storylines, and even a sex scene between Craig and his love interest played by Alexa Davalos. Yes, a sex scene in a holocaust film.
Zwick's ("Blood Diamond," "The Last Samurai") attempt at this story is admirable but his biggest mistake was making it a little too much "Hollywood action flick." Craig delves into a richer performance than his recent James Bond roles, and fans of Schreiber and Bell will be happy with their performances as well. Ultimately, this is a film that is worth seeing due to the originality of its content, yet it falls victim to many of the common flaws of films in the action/war genre.