The Aryan Couple

The Aryan Couple is a film that covers a story and general subject matter without the respect nor attention they both deserve. It tells the most spectacular of tales in quite the most unspectacular of fashions; dumbing down harsh, gritty, disturbing goings-on in 1940s Eastern Europe into a bland, televisual, underwhelming series' of events - the idea and the situations most of the characters find themselves in are quite incredible, the cinematic translation from script to screen is anything but. Directed by now deceased John Daly, he of mostly producing credit fame; the film adopts a somewhat flimsy, 'point and shoot' aesthetic running on what appears to be a film stock more akin to the whatever format they used in the 1980s for shooting specifically made-for TV, usually police orientated, serial dramas.

The film sees elderly, wealthy Jewish Hungarian Joseph Krauzenberg (Landau), and his family of various generations, come up against the Nazi war machine whom observe this successful Jewish businessman and naturally, want in. Using all the powers, bargaining, wrangling abilities he has plus something known as the 'Europa Plan', Joseph attempts to essentially trade in what he owns for he and his families' lives. But a film revolving around this would result in whatever threat there might be, born out of whether the Nazi's would stay true to their word or not. As it happens, there're some incidences in which this is used to get across a scrap of dramatic weight; but the real story going on here is that which relates to the title: an Aryan couple whom work for the Krauzenberg family and are secretly working for the resistance; so secretly in fact, that their employers know nothing of it.

The film begins with a somewhat ill-judged sequence which sees a whole load of holocaust iconography thrust into our faces. Where, maybe a series of text might have been more efficient informing us of necessary statistics and actions that were going in at the time, in the area; Daly throws a series of scenes at us in which dramatic shots of death camps and cattle trains accompanied by the necessary music are the order of the day; on one particular occasion, a tracking shot towards an oven as the looming, brooding sound effects crank it up a level. From the off, the film lays out its hand; telling us to feel the pain and the emotion which comes with this sort of subject material rather than allowing us to naturally arrive at this point in our own time as the film tragically progresses.

Following the premature bombardment of some of this content, the film will cut to a train station and use a second manipulation cue, in that it provides us with a Nazi guard on the platform tossing a child's toy onto the coal carriage located just behind the engine – obviously lost or dropped following the ensuing chaos of herding those 'guilty' of Judaism onto a cattle train. It's this somewhat sickly identification the film makes with the fact there are children involved, which again, begs us to fast-track emotion and feel the pain and emotional anxiety which almost certainly comes when better films are executing similar subject matter in a more efficient manner. The opening is an acknowledgement to those that died, whereas the film is more about those that are desperately doing everything in their power to survive. Daly's referencing to those that did perish is nothing more than exactly that; a mere 'nod' of the head, a removing of the hat to those that suffered – to say it doesn't quite reach the levels of achievement Polanski got to in 2002's The Piainist, in terms of getting across a sense of fear; loss; tragedy; risk and survival – all at various points and all observed brilliantly, is a gross understatement.

The Aryan couple of the title are Hans Vassmann (Doughty) and his wife Ingrid (Carver), two people whom it is established are 'doing their bit' in smuggling in the necessary items required to run a resistance outlet at the Krauzenberg's huge home. One of only very few tense moments comes early on involving the two when they try to get past a German checkpoint whilst carrying items they'd surely be shot for possessing. It might've been even more effective had the German guards not been played by British actors speaking in English the whole time – is it asking too much to have German actors playing these role and using the German language? It would seem the film-makers were worrying a little too much about audience accessibility to the piece than giving a more authentic experience for the rest of us.

The film maintains a pretty desperate sense that it wants to tug at those heart strings more often than not, thus encompassing some pretty melodramatic acting accompanied by some daftly executed scenes; best highlighted in the instance when some family heirlooms are handed over to the Aryan couple in a 'thank you' gesture. Some Nazi officers carry scars on their faces to emphasise evilness; most of the lines at the more tense of times are representative of peculiar screen writing and are delivered in the worst of fashions: "We will never be forgotten" a character states at one point around a dinner table, over a rousing musical score, but we're not involved enough to feel anything; while a moral predicament two people question each other over seems half-baked and lacking in any sort of real dramatic effect. The Aryan Couple is quite the little cinematic misfire; a floundering mess of an adaptation of what is a supposedly true story of something which deserved better.

In 1944, in Hungary, the wealthy Jewish industrialist Joseph Krauzenberg (Martin Landau) is forced by the Reichführer Heinrich Himmler (Danny Webb) to deliver his 3,000 employee factory; his palace with his collection of antiques and arts; a large amount in gold; and his house to the Reich. In return, the Nazis would send his big family that is arrested in Gestapo safe and sound to the neutral Switzerland and then to Palestine. Himmler schedules a dinner with Krauzenberg and his wife Rachel Krauzenberg (Judy Parfitt) to sign the contract and orders the butcher Eichmann (Steven Mackintosh) to not do harm to the imprisoned Jews relatives of Krauzenberg. Himmer also send the SS Edelhein (Christopher Fulford) to check the security of the palace and the two German house servants of Krauzenberg, Hans Vassman (Kenny Doughty) and his beautiful pregnant wife Ingrid Vassman (Caroline Carver). Hans and Ingrid are actually the Jews David and Leila Steinberg and members of the resistance. When the Krauzenberg couple concludes the negotiation with Himmler, Ingrid discloses to the couple that Hans and she are Jews. However, the deal is closed and Joseph has no means to include the young servants in his deal.

"The Aryan Couple" is an engaging, thrilling and dramatic war super production. The story is suspenseful and uses magnificent locations and cinematography. Martin Landau is fantastic as usual and Ms. Judy Parfitt has the best lines confronting Himmler. Despite the use of English language even for the German soldiers, the performances are excellent. The realistic negotiation of Joseph Krauzenberg with the Germans to save his family and the corruption of Dresler are unusual themes in this type of war movie that is unfortunately underrated in IMDb. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Contrato Arriscado" ("Risky Contract")

None of the film's creators seemingly bothered to check on WHICH side of Jews' (under the Nazi Germans) clothing the Star of David was demanded! It was the RIGHT side, NOT the left! With the THOROUGH search ordered of the Krausenberg palace it is not credible that the radio transmitter/receiver and its large antenna were not discovered by the SS. Additionaally, such a rig would have been swiftly detected and localized by Radio Direction Finding (RDF) equipment. All underground radio transmitter operations had to be moved from one place to another as swiftly as possible to avoid detection by RDF.

The suggestion that Heinrich Himmler had a sense of honor and therefore kept his word to Krausenberg is not only beyond ridiculous but it also attempts at a saving grace to a completely dishonorable and without scruples man. As it turned out in the end, he didn't even keep his word to his divine Adolf Hitler! Ex "native" of the Lodz Ghetto, Auschwitz and Dachau

Despite the fact that there have been many good films about the Holocaust, the Nazi manipulated genocide of the Jews in World War II, there is enough room for a new perspective to that hideous period in history to make THE COUPLE a welcome addition to the repertoire. Written by Director John Daly based on a story by Kendrew Lascelles this film reveals a little known bit of history that shows that the Nazis allowed the wealthy Jews to 'buy their freedom and lives' at enormous losses. And the key Nazi, at least in this story, is none other than Himmler.

Joseph Krauzenberg (Martin Landau) is a very wealthy German Jewish industrial tycoon whose fortune is mirrored in his palaces that are more like museums of great art. But in the year 1944 his important steel mills and other major industries are needed by the Nazis and so a plan is hatched to offer Krauzenberg, his wife Rachel (Judy Parfitt) and his considerable family the opportunity to escape death by allowing them to leave Germany for Switzerland and ultimately for Palestine. The only servants the Krauzenbergs maintain are the Vassmans - Ingrid (Caroline Carver) and Hans (Kenny Doughty) - an Aryan couple who in reality work for the Underground and are actually Jews under strong cover.

Eichmann (Steven Mackintosh) and Himmler (Danny Webb) are perpetrating the plan to gain all of the wealth and lands and homes and art of the Krauzenbergs and they attend a dinner party at the Krauzenberg palace to sign the final papers. One of the other officers Edelhein (Christopher Fulford) is the most repulsive of the group and despite the fact that Ingrid Vassman is pregnant, Edelhein pursues her as a perfect foil for implanting his precious seed in the 'Aryan beauty' to populate the new Germany. As the night of transaction occurs Krauzenberg visits his large family being held by Eichmann in the Gestapo and reassures them that all will be safe. The Vassmans love the Krauzenbergs and ultimately confess that they are Jewish and wish to escape to Palestine with the Krauzenbergs. In a fast paced finale the trials and tribulations of the final plan are worked through in a somewhat surprising way.

THE COUPLE is beautifully photographed (the film was shot in Poland despite the fact that the Krauzenberg estates were in Hungary) and the mood of evil is always present in the night scenes with the requisite searchlights penetrating the darkness. Laudau and Parfitt are strong as are Webb, Mackintosh and Fulford. Neither Caroline Carver nor Kenny Doughty is up to the task of making the Couple credible. But the overall impact of the film is the focus of the evil that drove the Nazi machine, even with this slight bit of human kindness that was bestowed on the Krauzenberg family at such an awful cost. Grady Harp

Kenny Doughty and Caroline Carver play the title role of a pair of gentile house servants to a wealthy Jewish couple, Martin Landau and Judy Parfitt. Landau is some concern to the Third Reich which is now both at war with the world and just getting into the business of exterminating Jews. But this particular Jew has a large industrial concern that he built, but the firm's liquid assets are in banks quite beyond the control of the Reich. The Nazi dilemma is to get them to hand over control and maybe let them live, emigrate to Palestine as part of the bargain.

Danny Webb plays Heinrich Himmler and he'd love to get control of the industrial concern for the S.S. and get to be number two in the regime maybe displace rivals, Borrman, Goebbels, Speer, and Goering. And Landau's got an art collection and if Himmler gets a hold of that, he'll have one to rival the one Goering is looting from France. So what's wrong with having dinner, breaking bread even if it is with Jews.

The fly in the ointment is The Aryan Couple who turn out to be both resistance fighters and Jews. It certainly did look strange that in those times gentiles would be working for Jews when that was expressly forbidden by the Nuremberg laws. They certainly raise a few eyebrows at S.S. headquarters.

The cast performs well enough, but on the whole I found the story to be bizarre at best. And it might have worked well with just Landau as the industrialist matching wits with Himmler over dinner and drinks. The Aryan Couple of the title really contributes nothing to the essential part of the story.