Contrato Arriscado

World War 2 ... it is not just the war that was abhorent ... it is how human beings were treated. Please do not compare yourself to what especially Jews had to go through, if you decide by choice to not listen to medical experts - that is just one example of how people nowadays like to distort history.

Now that aside, there are cliches here and some predictable plot twists. But overall it is quite the engaging human story. Even when certain other twists are ... well hard to understand to say the least. But ... it is what it is and I reckon we are human after all, even if it doesn't always seem that way (in this case when being a Nazi - never forget that some if not most were brainwashed into believing certain things ... which would be a more apt comparison for those thinking themselves as victims, but let's not delve more into that).

It is a bit long and I reckon has certain pacing flaws, but the question is how much you are willing to cut it some slack for the message and the endurance of the main characters ... so in the end as always it will be up to you ...

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.

Maybe being a child of the generation depicted in this movie made me feel closer to the situations. I am not Jewish if that means anything. All the actors in this story play their roles perfectly. The tension builds to a point that makes one totally involved in the events. I highly recommend this film to everyone. Not for its historical significance but for the performances of all the actors. There are few films that involve an audience so much that one feels the pressure, tension, anxiety, and utter fear the characters portray in the story. Landau plays his part well, but Gretchen Becker, Judy Parfitt and Kenny Doughty are superb along with all the supporting actors. A great movie. I like to call these movies "sleepers".

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

My wife picked this up at the video store the other night. I am a WWII period movie junkie.

I found the plot feasible, but unlikely. Himmler was too much of a controlling egomaniac to negotiate with a DIRTY JEW. He would have taken Krauzenberg Company and wealth and had him and his family killed.

The actors playing the NAZI soldiers did a good job showing the cold disregard and hatred that Nazis had for anyone but their own.

Martin Landau did a very good job playing Krauzenberg. He at least tried to have a German accent. Many of the other characters did not even attempt the accent, but instead sounded very British.

As for the cinematography, it was very good. The editing is OK. The music is typical for this type of movie.

The actor that played Himmler did a very good job with this role. It did help that he bore a striking resemblance to Himmler.

Overall this is good period piece that reminds us of the events of the Nazis and JEWS during WWII.