DVD Released September 2, 2009
Upon its cinematic release, many accused Ed Zwick’s holocaust drama of being unfaithful to the true story of the Bielski brothers and their band of rebellious partisans. Responsible for saving over one thousand Jews from the Nazis, they have been labeled either heroes or “Jewish-communist bandits”, depending on who you ask. As portrayed by Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber and Jamie Bell, Tuvia, Zus and Asael respectively, they sit comfortably in the former category.
That is not to say, however, that decisions always came easily. In this version, after escaping the slaughter of their family, the brothers flee into the woods. With an ever growing band of refugees under their wing, the constant challenges of food, shelter and avoiding capture pressure the brothers' relationship. Dissatisfied with Tuvia’s preference for survival instead of taking the war to the Nazis, Zus leaves to join a neighboring band of Soviet partisans, who are not without their own anti-Semitic prejudices. And the dilemma central to many a holocaust drama emerges – are the characters able to stay whole in the face of so much inhumanity?
These omnipresent issues are often unfortunately drowned out by Zwick’s broad emotional strokes. Despite directing some superb Hollywood dramas such as Glory and The Last Samurai, subtlety is not part of his arsenal. Like those excessive but engaging renditions of historical events, Defiance feels sanitized and simplified.
It’s been glorified too – nowhere in the archives will you find records of their battle with a Wehrmacht tank. The Deux Ex Machina that follows also tells of a screenwriter desperately trying to tie his story into a neat bow. For the real partisans, of course, no such catharsis was forthcoming.
