“We are the last living survivors from our prison block. Besides me, you are the only person who could still recognize the man who killed our families.” – Max
Number of Times Seen – 2 (8 Mar 2016 and 21 Jul 2016)
Link to original review – Here
Brief Synopsis – A Holocaust survivor goes off on a quest to kill the man who murdered his family.
My Take on it – I was completely blown away when I saw this film back in March and couldn’t wait to see it again.
I convinced my wife to watch it with me and being that I already knew the twists and turns that are to be expected, we essentially each watched two completely different movies.
I noticed so much more during this second viewing and I’m even more in awe of the script and the way Atom Egoyan filmed it.
Christopher Plummer is superb here and does a wonderful job portraying someone who is both a Holocaust survivor and someone suffering with some form of Dementia.
I’m slightly disappointed that he didn’t receive more recognition for this role because it’s definitely one of his best.
They do a wonderful job exploring the themes dealt with here and it’s hard to find (much) fault with any of it.
Besides Plummer, the supporting cast lend so much to the story. The fact that there are numerous famous actors here, we never know what to expect will happen during this quest.
In addition to Plummer, this film feature Martin Landau, Bruno Ganz, Dean Norris, Jurgen Prochnow and Henry Czerny.
After watching this a second time, I am once again positive that this film deserves the place I gave it on my Top Ten list of 2015 (#4) because it truly is such a powerful and emotional tale.
The sad fact tho is that this film didn’t get the kind of distribution it deserves, but I think that with word of mouth, more people will eventually see this diamond in the rough.
If you haven’t yet seen this, I strongly urge you to try and find a copy to watch… It really is worth it!
Bottom Line – Excellent portrayal of both a survivor of the Holocaust and of someone suffering from a form of dementia. Plummer is superb here and I’m disappointed that he wasn’t nominated for enough awards for this role. Watching this film a second time is even more eye opening than the first time was. The themes explored here are superbly dealt with. Excellent supporting cast helps Plummer with his quest because we never know who or what to expect along the way. This is a film that more people need to see! Highly Highly Recommended!
MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – During the Holocaust, concentration camp prisoners only received tattoos at one location, the infamous Auschwitz complex, which consisted of the concentration camp Auschwitz I (Main Camp), the extermination camp Auschwitz II (Auschwitz-Birkenau), and the work camp Auschwitz III (Monowitz and sub camps). Only the prisoners selected for work were issued serial numbers. The other prisoners, who arrived by train, were sent directly to the gas chambers and killed. They were never registered and received no tattoos. This is one of the reasons, why it is difficult today to estimate the exact number of victims. (From IMDB)
Rating – Oscar Worthy (no change from original review)
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