Spielberg's eternal masterpiece and his best!!!

Today is history. Today will be remembered. Years from now the young will ask with wonder about this day. Today is history and you are part of it. Six hundred years ago when elsewhere they were footing the blame for the Black Death, Casimir the Great - so called - told the Jews they could come to Krakow. They came. They trundled their belongings into the city. They settled. They took hold. They prospered in business, science, education, the arts. With nothing they came and with nothing they flourished. For six centuries there has been a Jewish Krakow. By this evening those six centuries will be a rumour. They never happened. Today is history.

Directed by: Steven Spielberg

Starring: Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley, Ralph Fiennes, Caroline Goodall, Embeth Davidtz

Genre: Biography/Drama/War

Running time: 195 minutes

My review:

The film represents the indelible true story of the enigmatic Oskar Schindler, a member of the Nazi party, womaniser and war profiteer who saved the lives of more than 1000 Jews during the Holocaust. It is a triumph of one man who made a difference and the drama of those who survived one of the darkest chapters in human history because of what he did.

I loved Schindler's List an awful lot. I liked it first time but loved it even more after watching it again. It is really emotional because obviously it is a heartbreaking film because of the Holocaust and what happens to the Jews during World War II. Approximately 6 million Jews were murdered. This film truly shows us what the Holocaust was really like and what the Jewish people were treated like. Schindlers List shows us what it was really like and made us feel like a Jew because we felt sorry for them because they werent appreciated at all. This film made me feel quite sick in a few ways because the Nazis stated that the Jews were scum, evil and with dirty blood but they arent at all. They are only human. The Nazis are the ones with dirty blood, scum and evil because what they do to the Jews is right to them. Despite of how emotional, heartbreaking and depressing this film is, it is also an absolutely beautiful and inspiring film too. This film shows that even an enemy can save people for the right reasons which is what Oskar Schindler does. It also shows despite of what damage humans can create but also shows what beauty humans can create aswell. Schindlers List is one of those films that is really hard to watch and that everyone must watch aswell. I find Schindlers List quite hard to review to be perfectly honest.

Liam Neeson delivers an absolutely outstanding performance as Oskar Schindler. Neeson is obviously a well known actor but he doesnt really earn much credit for the films he has been in like Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, Batman Begins, Kingdom Of Heaven and Kinsey. Oskar Schindler is the character of Neesons character and is without a doubt Neesons best performance. He is the perfect Schindler because he makes Schindler not only a real life person but also a character of his own in my opinion. He deserved his Oscar nomination but wasnt good enough in my opinion to win the Academy Award. Oskar Schindler was obviously a hero but Liam Neeson made him a real hero of his own as his own character. Ben Kingsley delivers an awesome performance as Schindlers Jewish accountant Itzhak Stern. Stern worked alongside Schindler as the accountant for his Enamelware company in Kraków and greatly helped in running the company. He is credited with typing the list of names known as Schindlers List; a list of Jews who survived the Holocaust because of Oskar Schindler's intervention. Ben Kingsley was a major and extremely supportive actor in this film. He alongside Liam Neeson in the scenes made this film more powerful that it already is. He should have had an Oscar nomination alongside Ralph Fiennes in this film. Ralph Fiennes delivers an even more powerful performance as commandant of the Nazi Concentration Camp Amon Goth. Ralph Fiennes also made Goth a character of his own too because of how cleverly Fiennes interpreted the cold hearted man that was Amon Goth. Ralph Fiennes has always been brilliant at portraying a villain but Amon Goth is the colder villain than Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter series. He is truly a character that I want to really hurt so badly because he is so cold and horrible. Ralph Fiennes deserved his Oscar nomination in this film.

The directing from Steven Spielberg was absolutely phenomenon. The beauty as well as the horror that Spielberg brings into this film is just great. Spielberg proves something in this film especially when it involves the little girl in the red coat because anyone can see a Jew suffer, anyone can help a Jew and also anyone can hurt a Jew that size. Despite, the fact that the little girl doesnt speak in the film, she is quite a difference making character because she is the only character that shows colour because she is like the only beauty within the film even though there are dark hours and dark events that occur in this film which is why I have to call Schindler's List the best from legend Steven Spielberg. I think the one thing that I simply love about Steven Spielberg is that all of his films affect people in different ways. Most of the films he has done have been very heartfelt emotional ones particularly this, E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial, The Color Purple, A.I: Artificial Intelligence, Saving Private Ryan, Munich, The Terminal and Catch Me If You Can. But Spielberg can affect people because of the complete enjoyment of his films. For example, Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, Jaws, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind and War Of The Worlds are complete action packed thrill rides. People will love those because of its action, suspense and general beauty of them. The script writing was phenomenal. It was very clever and it was very persuasive in a slight way because of the beauty and the horror that was the Holocaust. This film is obviously a war film but it isnt a war action packed soldier film but despite that, this film needs to be called a war film because it is obviously set during World War II (1939-1945) and also because it is like a war that the Nazis are causing in the Holocaust between them and the Jews. This is one of the best biography films ever made. The one film that is similar to Schindlers List is The Pianist because it is the cloest film to Schindlers List that tells a true story about the Holocaust.The only difference is that The Pianist is mostly about one person but Schindlers List is about every single Jew in Poland.

The chemistry between Oskar Schindler and Itzhak Stern was obviously a slight enemy side to it because Stern is Jewish and Schindler is Nazi but they obviously are absolutely great friends who arent just work partners but also seem like brothers or any other family relation. Their relationship was beautiful. My heart melted when Schindler broke down in tears because he couldnt get enough Jews out to save them but Stern understood Schindler and said that he had got enough out and that he did too much. Also, when the Jewish people walked up to Schindler and hugged him. I felt really tense with the relationship between Oskar Schindler and Amon Goth because it is like a certain clash of personality. Schindler sort of changes personality when he first sees what the Nazis do the Jews and how they treat them. Also, of how Amon Goth treats them. It is tense because no one knows for sure whether Schindler did confront Goth about the Jewish massacre.

The twist was when Schindler decided to write a list down of all the Jewish people he could save from the Holocaust and death itself. Every single thing about this film was true. It is a story that I first didnt believe was true but it really was true.

This film was very violent when some Jews were shot in the head. There was a lot of bloody impacy from the gunshots from the Nazis. This film did have one sex scene involving Schindler and his wife and that was about it with sex itself. But there was an awful lot of nudity especially when the gas chambers were involved and also when the Jews were told to run around a field naked until they are told to come out and either be sent to a camp or work.

The cinematography was absolutely outstanding indeed. I liked the black and white photography within the film. It is so clever how it changes from a black and white screen to a complete colour screen with the same Jewish people which occurs around the end of the film. The art direction was awesome. It truly made it seem like it was in World War II. I loved the costumes too especially on the little girl with the red coat. The make up was phenomenal too. The music was sort of typical classical music.

This film was a winner of 7 Academy Awards overall. It won Best Picture 1993, Best Director (Steven Spielberg), Best Art Direction, Best Costumes Design, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing and Best Music Score. It was nominated for Best Leading Actor (lost to Tom Hanks in Philadelphia), Best Supporting Actor (lost to Tommy Lee Jones in The Fugitive), Best Costume Design (lost to The Age Of Innocence), Best Sound (lost to Jurassic Park) and Best Make-Up (lost to Mrs. Doubtfire). This film won 3 Golden Globes in total. Best Picture (Drama), Best Director (Steven Spielberg) and Best Screenplay. It was nominated for Best Leading Actor (Drama) (Liam Neeson) but lost to Tom Hanks in Philadelphia, Best Supporting Actor (Ralph Fiennes) who lost to Tommy Lee Jones in The Fugitive and Best Music, Original Score which lost to Heaven & Earth.

This is my favourite film from the extremely talented Steven Spielberg. It is Liam Neesons best film and is certainly Ralph Fiennes best performance too. The ending was beautiful which makes it one of the most powerful endings of all time. It is such an inspirational ending too that will warm your heart. This will always be Steven Spielbergs eternal masterpiece that will be remembered forever!!!

10/10

Comments

MovieMan

Posted : 8 months, 1 week ago at Mar 6 18:36

Wow, nice review man.

Added by SJMJ 11 months ago on 29 November 2008 08:18