A Redenção: A História Real de Bonhoeffer

I have never really understood the back and forth with timeline's, a glimpse into the past should correlate with what is taking place in the present. Otherwise just play it out in chronological order (just my opinion). We both left the theater (my wife and I) about so much, I was able to get more context in one paragraph on Wikipedia (IE: spent 1.5 years in prison and was tried for participating in the attempt on Hitler and more). The message is good and needed, especially today with so much division in our country. I love what Angel Studio's does, getting quality productions out in the main stream and I will continue to support them. This is just my honest review, not trying to be critical.

Well clarified the passion and resolve of B and the confessing church. Loved the flashback model, the cast was well selected, the film moved along well. Loved the portrayal of B's relationship with his brother Walter and the depth of family connection and love. Being that the plight of the Jewish people under Hitler was a central focus I was surprised there was no mention of B's twin sister being married to a Jewish man and moving to England. Well done over all. I shed tears and wish I will one day be as courageous as B if faced with such choices. Thanks for producing this film. I recommend it.

Well-filmed and acted. However, the film spent an inordinate amount of time on Bonhoeffer's 1930 trip to New York and his supposed fascination with gospel music and jazz. In point of fact, his later prison letters reveal the lasting influence of the traditional Lutheran chorales and the hymns of Paul Gerhardt on his theology and piety. There was no mention whatsoever of his engagement to Maria von Wedemeyer (eighteen years his junior), with whom he exchanged dozens of letters during his imprisonment (1943-1945), and later published as 'Love Letters from Cell 92.' It was Maria's grandmother who funded the Confessing Church's seminary at Finkenwalde where Bonhoeffer championed a kind of 'new monasticism' for the seminarians-with traditional chorales and an ordered praying of the psalms. A plot line that wove Maria into the end of Bonhoeffer's life would have raised some compelling questions-such as, Why get engaged if the/your world is about to end? All that being said, it is good that a film of Bonhoeffer was produced, bringing his story of fighting for truth to a wider audience.

As a "docu-allegory," this is a solid 7; the historicity is woven in pretty well, and the fictionalized account of his death deeply Christian and compelling. But as a biography, basic mistakes (referring to the Eastern Front years before Barbarossa) and moving the ultimate scene of his death from Flossenburg with his co-conspirators to an anonymous isolated farmhouse with a random group of strangers are a bridge too far. Perhaps Germany restricts such things, but to me it was a missed opportunity to not use Flossenburg for those critical scenes, much as Sophie Scholl--the Last Days used the actual guillotine that killed Scholl in the movie. At times, Bonhoeffer simply does not come through as the erudite theologian that he was, but more as a proof-texting Protestant. That said, this is a "must see" if you're willing to accept broad deviations from history, and not anticipate a deep theological journey. Lingering to watch the cavalcade of quotes at the end is more than worth the time. Bonhoeffer reminds us that every generation faces its evil; that every individual must either act, or let evil have its way; and that Christ is the One to guide that choice. And that is truly a timeless message.

Having high hopes, I was disappointed in Bonhoeffer. The narrative was choppy, the pace was slow, and the plot felt disjointed. Plus, it was hard to understand the dialogue with the accents, I felt like I should've waited for it to come out on streaming and watched it at home with the captions on. However, the acting was good and the production values were excellent. I love the fact that more and more Christian-themed movies are being made today and wholeheartedly support Angel Studios, I just wish that the movies had better scripts and were more entertaining, beyond being primarily focused on inspiration.