Cinema is rife with movies set during World War II. Few films, however, have portrayed the war with the unflinching grit of 2006's Black Book. Set against the backdrop of the German occupation of Holland this film offers none of the war time glory, home front heroism, or easy answers viewers have come to expect from World War II dramas. Instead, the film presents viewers with a morally murky, emotionally conflicting, and visceral view of war that is nothing short of haunting. For a war drama that is equally provocative and thought provoking take a page from Black Book.
The story begins in 1944 Holland with Jewish singer Rachel Stein hiding from the occupying Germans in a local farmhouse. She is forced to flee when the farmhouse is destroyed by an Allied bombing. She then reunites with her family and arranges to book passage with other refugees out of occupied territory. Before they can make their escape, however, their boat is ambushed in an attack by the SS that leaves Rachel the only survivor. Following the attack she abandons her plans to flee and becomes determined to exact revenge upon the regime that murdered her family. With the help of a family friend she contacts the Dutch resistance and sets out to join their ranks. Soon after joining the resistance several members of her cell are captured, and she is tasked with seducing the local SD Commander in order to learn their fate. As her mission unfolds, however, she starts falling for her intended target and finds herself at war with her own heart as well as with the Nazis. As the war draws to a close she's pitted against the Nazis, her fellow resistance fighters, and her own countrymen in a harrowing struggle for survival.
Through its portrayal of ordinary people attempting to survive extraordinary times Black Book sets itself apart as an espionage drama that raises as many moral questions as it does thrills. Rather than a black and white tale of villains and heroes the film offers a complex tale of deeply flawed and compromised individuals forced to navigate devastating decisions. In its portrayal of Rachel as a Jewish woman infiltrating the upper echelons of the Third Reich the film inverts the conventions of Holocaust dramas and raises a series of ethical questions. By showing the story from Rachel's perspective the film places viewers in the uncomfortable position of wondering what they would do if they were in her compromised shoes. Her relationship with SD Commander Ludwig Muntze is particularly precarious as it shows characters from opposite sides of a genocide finding humanity, understanding, and even romance with the enemy. In this way the film reminds viewers of the individuals behind the flags in every war and forces viewers to confront the reality that even the most seemingly black and white conflicts contain shades of grey. The film's depiction of betrayal within the ranks of the resistance also offers a complex take on the all too human people behind even the most noble of causes. Similarly, the depiction of the anti-Semitism rampant across war-time Europe (both several resistance fighters and the family hiding Rachel display blatant anti-semitism) highlights the attitudes that made it all too easy for the Nazis to rise to power. Join Rachel on a journey into the darkest chapters of recent history and the murkiest corners of the human heart in Black Book.
The films transports viewers to occupied Holland thanks to the stellar work of its cast. Helene Reijin is a saucy delight worthy of Mae West as Rachel's unlikely ally, SD secretary and SS Officer's mistress Ronnie. Thom Hoffman alternates between roguish charm and menace in his performance as resistance member Hans Akkerman. Waldemar Kobus makes for an ideal villain in his brutal turn as sadistic SS officer Gunther Franken. Derek de Lint is a portrait of tortured grief as resistance leader Gerben Kuipers. Sebastian Koch infuses Rachel's conflicted target turned love interest, Ludwig Muntze, with a humility, depth, and humanity that leave little question as to why she falls for him. Carice van Houten is a revelation in a performance that is at once seductive, witty, steely, tormented, and never less than compelling as Rachel.
At once a rollicking thriller and a harrowing portrait of the horror of war Black Book is not your parents' spy drama. Through its intricately plotted and emotionally raw script the film takes viewers on a devastating journey into the abyss that is war. The uniformly superb performances bring the film's cast of compromised characters to life with a subtlety and humanity that elevates the film beyond just another tale of heroes and villains. For a war-time thriller that will linger in your memory long after the closing credits fade flip through Rachel's little Black Book.
No comments:
Post a Comment