Walking with the Enemy

"Walking with the Enemy," a 2013 historical drama set during World War II, offers a glimpse into a lesser-known chapter of Holocaust history. While the film's intentions are noble, its execution falls short of its potential, resulting in a somewhat middling experience.

The movie's strengths lie in its compelling true story and the earnest performances of its cast. The production design effectively captures the period, immersing viewers in war-torn Hungary. However, the film struggles with pacing issues and occasionally relies on melodramatic elements that detract from its historical gravity.

Despite its flaws, "Walking with the Enemy" succeeds in shedding light on acts of heroism during one of history's darkest periods. The film's 6/10 rating reflects its admirable attempt to tackle complex historical events, even if it doesn't fully realize its ambitious goals.

For viewers interested in World War II narratives and stories of individual courage, "Walking with the Enemy" may prove to be a worthwhile, albeit imperfect, viewing experience.

If you enjoy movies about WW2 or the Holocaust then you might find enough in this movie to make it worthwhile. It's a bit schizophrenic. Luckily the good parts outweigh the bad.

There's plenty of wartime action and suspense, and for the most part it's fairly well directed. It's the personal dramatic parts that occasionally fall flat, usually dragged down by some expository dialog that might as well have the actors holding up signs that read "here's a little bit of the history." Ben Kingsley's first appearance in the film is a good example. His hairpiece looks great but he delivers an uncharacteristically leaden balloon as he "converses" about the situation in his country. In his later scenes he's excellent.

The coda offers an equally clunky wrap-up of the story. It also left me scratching my head, wondering why -- since they acknowledge at this late point that it's based on a true life hero -- why they didn't just make it about that person. Was it perhaps a literary rights issue? If so, why bother mentioning the real person at all?

The direction and editing are also uneven, generally good but occasionally terrible. The big action or suspense scenes are very effectively staged and edited, but the "fade to black" transitions at times are more appropriate for a TV movie needing to break for a commercial than for an (alleged) 80 million epic.

And while the costumes and hairstyles are generally authentic, the lead actor's hair and the little boy's are way too modern, a constant reminder that we're watching a movie and these are only actors playing a role. If the whole story didn't depend on the lead passing himself off as a Nazi soldier, his millennial 'do might have passed muster. Note to future filmmakers: if directing a period piece, check out some old stock footage or paintings to make sure your hair department is on the ball... and don't hire actors who refuse to cut their precious locks.

Don't expect The Pianist or Saving Private Ryan but it's also far from the disaster some of the reviewers here report.

Based on true story, 'Walking with the Enemy' is a gripping tale of WW II Hungary. However, a couple of characterisations seem awry. In the first place, Otto Skorzeny is turned into a nasty Adolf Eichmann type character, when he was in fact a combat commando who was acquitted of war crimes charges. Also, Ben Kingsley's portrayal of Regent Horthy is probably too noble - Horthy may have been basically decent, but he was also opportunistic, particularly in the earlier stages of the war. .

Early in the film, resistance fighter Cohen (Jonas Armstrong) and one of his friends have the opportunity to steal a German officer's uniform to enable Cohen to infiltrate areas that he would not normally be able to go. It's actually a concentration camp guard uniform, because it has the insignia of the SS-Totenkopfverbände (Death's Head Units - the administrators of the concentration camps), which ALL German WWII officers wore according to many film and TV producers. The film itself has the feeling of a made-for-TV-movie, but IMDb doesn't give any indication of that being the case. There are places with clear demarcation between acts, as if to enable commercials to be inserted for television. Additionally, I'm used to watching Jonas Armstrong in the BBC series "Robin Hood". Armstrong maintains two to four days of beard growth throughout the film, including when he is wearing the SS uniform, even though the SS were required to be clean-shaven daily, and maintained a high standard of grooming and appearance. I'm guessing that the filmmakers are counting on the vast majority of people not knowing that so Armstrong can use his "rugged good looks" to help win us over, in case we weren't already on his side as the film's hero and Nazi fighter. That's probably also why his hair was longer than the SS would have allowed. The film is based on the true story of Pinchas Tibor Rosenbaum. The film's producers must have felt that a name like Elek Cohen would be a little easier for us goyim to handle than Pinchas Rosenbaum. It's a well-produced film, other than Armstrong's grooming, and an important World War II story about resistance to the Germans. I recommend it.

Walking with the Enemy is a gripping tale of a horrible time in history. This emotionally wrenching movie is a unique re-telling of a real life story. I recommend watching this movie but caution you, if you do watch the film, please make sure you have plenty of Kleenex on hand to wipe away the tears you are sure to shed. This movie was interesting because it reveals the courage it took to impersonate a Nazi in order to save the lives of innocent people. It is sad to think of the heartache people had to live through and the lives that were lost due to demonic acts of inhumanity committed because of hate and a false sense of importance.