dennispublic

There are two levels to this movie: On one level it is a Hollywood blockbuster, well made and well produced. Many will be interested in this.... But...

Look a bit deeper BEFORE you see the movie and it will mean a lot more to you, and you will enjoy it a lot more. Do you enjoy the internet? Free speech? IMDb? Then this movie should mean more to you then the typical Hollywood blockbuster. THIS IS A TRUE STORY.... which makes me take this film 10x more seriously then I would a normal Hollywood blockbuster. I'm a Canadian 30-something and none of my family was involved in WW2, and I'm not Jewish. So I'm pretty much impartial. But I'm still fascinated by it, and very conscious of the sacrifices people paid so that I could post this review. I have enormous respect for those who paid for my freedoms. Enormous, indescribable respect. As should you.

You think the world economy is bad, etc etc? Watch this and put things into perspective. If you're younger and don't really see WW2 as being relevant in your life: just wait. As you grow older you look further back to understand where you are coming from and how you ended up where you did. "If you know your history, then you would know where you're coming from." - BM

The first time I saw this film I wasn't terribly impressed - as far as Hollywood flicks go you can get more explosions and action in other films, I gave it about 7/10. What made me watch it again was when I saw a documentary on History Channel about the Bielski brothers. That really hit home and reminded me it wasn't just another flick. THIS WAS REAL. I had to watch it again before I realized: this deserves 9/10.

That made me google them, and led me to the Wikipedia page for the Bielski Partisans. I *highly* recommend you see a doc or visit the Wikipedia page BEFORE you see this movie. It really makes you appreciate it more, and lets you know this movie is infinitely more important than The Transformers, etc etc. 20,000+ descendants are alive and well because of what these FOUR brothers did.

In western culture, particularly with young people, we tend to think the U.S.A / U.K won the second world war for us. The truth is - the Russians and everyone on the Eastern front were what defeated the Nazis. Google it. This movie is a great example of how they did it, religion is irrelevant here. This is why "we" won the war and still exist to post reviews on websites. In an age where Lady Gaga and the likes are the most famous people on the planet... it really makes ya think... Who is a true hero? A legend? Who should be recorded in the history books for all time? Who among us has saved 1200 lives against all odds?

Tuvia, Alexander ("Zus"), Asael, and Aron.

Much respect to all veterans, east and west, from a younger person who enjoys his freedom. Thank you.

Making a film like this is extremely risky! It has so many complex scenes and they've all been all woven together into a huge tapestry. There are so many mistakes that could have been made; so many ways this movie could have gone bad.

But somehow Jaco Van Dormael has pulled it off, and perfectly! It's mind blowing! It's one of those films you have to see twice before you can really put all the threads together and fully appreciate the explosion of genius that you just witnessed.

Not many directors, if any, could pull it off like Jaco has done here. I think he was able to succeed because he was the writer too; it was his baby through and through. Directing something like this would otherwise be impossible without that kind of intimate knowledge and passion for the material.

The writing is incredible. The directing is incredible. This guy deserves completely separate awards for both. It is truly a film unlike any other I've seen, and definitely one of my top five favourites of all time. It might make your head hurt a bit at first, but hang in there - and see it twice.

This show is clear evidence that Mr Spielberg needs to retire. It's crystal clear that he has nothing left in the tank creatively, but apparently he's willing to whore his name out for an easy cheque. There simply is no other possible explanation for this show.

I think at the very least Spielberg should take 5-10 years off to think about what he has done here and how he can make amends to humanity. That's what this show is: a crime against humanity, it's THAT bad. Bad writing, bad acting, bad special effects, it's all just so... bad...

Spielberg should be penalized for tricking us into watching even a single episode. Perhaps some kind of class action lawsuit - this show has caused me to suffer horribly and I should be compensated. Since watching the first few episodes I have been having horrible nightmares and often wake late at night in a cold sweat screaming about "Falling Skies". The nightmares are not about the aliens or anything like that - they are just about how horrible this show is and how terrified I am of someone making me watch another episode.

Needless to say this is the biggest steaming pile of American dog crap I have seen in years and I've come to warn people: don't watch this!