Defiance opens in 1941 with the Nazi
invasion of Eastern Europe, and tells of wave of terror and murder
perpetrated by Hitler’s SS and the efforts of a small band of Jewish
partisans to resist their bloodthirsty occupiers in any way possible.
The film stars Daniel Craig, fresh from his success in Casino Royale
and presumably already rehearsing his Oscar acceptance speech in his
head (Jewish + Nazis = Academy Award), and is directed by Edward Zwick
of Blood Diamond and Last Samurai fame.
Sadly however the results were somewhat
uneven, much like Craig’s Belarusian accent, and plaudits evaded the
usually reliable Zwick this time around.
Defiance received a middling
critical and commercial reception, barely managing to recoup its $50
million budget. It also garnered controversy for its rather one-sided
depiction of the Bielski partisans whose own crimes against the local
populace are wholly ignored, the lack of Belarusian language, several
glaring inaccuracies and also for what some reviewers took for a stance
implying the majority of Jews living in Nazi-occupied Europe made little
or no effort to oppose their German oppressors, unlike the coarsely
noble partisans depicted herein. The film also contains a number of
trumped-up battle sequences which are wholly invented and reportedly
shocked Nechama Tec, upon whose book the movie is based, by portraying
the mostly reticent partisans as a crack squad of combat-hungry
hill-dwelling commandos.
On a more positive note the film does
attempt to deal with its weighty subject matter in a meaningful way and
its intentions are undoubtedly positive - all criticisms aside, it does
succeed fairly ably at drawing attention to a heretofore little known
resistance movement on the Eastern Front. There are a number of strong
performances, including that of Australian Mia Wasikowska (Alice in
Wonderland) as Craig’s love interest. Ultimately however the film’s
pacing is rather leaden and its Good Guys vs. Bad Guys shtick both
skirts the whole truth and never really holds the viewer’s attention in
the way it was intended. For a colour feature this one came across as
wilfully black and white, and not merely in the period footage.
Special Features
Theatrical trailer.
