Tout est illuminé

Everything Is Illuminated A young Jewish American searches for the woman that helped his grandfather escape Nazi persecution while embarking on a cross-European tour with some unlikely associates.

Liev Schreiber makes his directorial debut with a playful angst usually associated with his acting ethos. When successful actors decide to sit in the director's chair, we usually get a biographical glimpse at the souls beneath the acting mask- Check. We usually get a mishmash of genres- Check. But what we normally do not get is an insightful original film which is credible, intelligent and moving.

Elijah Wood plays Jonathan, an inquisitive young boy who collects pieces of life as he goes. He is on a mission to find a woman in a photograph. The sepia picture bears his grandfather (an uncanny resemblance to him) and the woman. To aid his journey he enlists the help of travel guides that comprise of a Hip-Hop loving break-dancer, Alex (Eugene Hutz), his apathetic and perma-vexed grandfather (Boris Leskin) and his dog- Sammy Davis Junior Jr! What ensues is essentially a comedy. There is an un-patronisingly simple introduction with voice-overs. Alex's is especially funny as he educates his younger brother on the year 1969, proving how popular he is with the chicks and break-dancing thus setting him up as Jonathan's antithesis.

Schreiber begins to break down the characters as they progress and the comedy acts as an intentional veil to what is a story about three people linked to the holocaust who do not really know themselves. All three hold the film with tenderness and authenticity something Schreiber was unlikely to get wrong and as enchanting and fantastical as the film is, the horrors that are allowed to crack through, i.e. the past are presented in an almost palatable tone (incidental music, cinematography) which make them all the more unsettling.

As the unlikely group finally find the town they seek they learn of the true atrocities that occurred and find out a lot about who they really are.

Elijah wood is as authentic as usual, bringing his usual innocence and strength to the screen. Formally a resident good in Lord of the Rings and a resident evil in Sin City he plays Jonathan with aplomb as he is bombarded with culture shocks and a quest for truth. Boris Leskin as the grandfather also delivers his angst and frustration at the youths with great humour and conviction as his own past is unravelled. However, it is Eugene Hutz as Alex that makes the show. The director using that old trade of translation misunderstandings to create and maintain a humour that is actually funny and not gimmicky.

Schreiber has delivered an enchanting debut that has both heart and soul. The continuous score and beautiful photography creates a fairy tale haze around a story about identity, truth and family. If there was a complaint, it would be the speed at which the film changes direction; though this could have been intentional it may not sit well with all. Nevertheless this is a sterling effort that delivers great comedy and bonding between an unlikely group while dissecting another aspect of the horrors of World War 2 in a completely fresh fashion.

-Chi&Ojo

This is precious. Everything Is Illuminated is sweetly and sublimely funny from the first delicious line of dialogue. Oh, how I've been waiting for this to arrive in Austin. While Elijah Wood is charming as ever as Jonathan Safran Foer (the real-life author of the novel Everything Is Illuminated), it's Eugene Hutz (playing Jonathan's Ukrainian tour-guide and translator, Alex) who truly steals this film. Alex is a hip-hop-lovin' Ukrainian break-dancer who, along with his grandfather, helps Jonathan find the woman who saved Jonathan's grandfather's life during World War II. The Ukrainian countryside has never looked so breath taking. I'm thinking of packing it all up and moving to the former Soviet state.

The tone of the film, however, shifts when Jonathan and Alex do finally meet the woman they're looking for, and suddenly, this adorable comedy turns into a heart-breaking historical drama about a Jewish village that was annihilated during the Nazi occupation. Everything Is Illuminated is about history, heritage, and the wisdom that can be gained from uncovering the past. It's perfect.

I just saw this last night and was just blown away. This was a great book and I really couldn't wait to see the movie. Of course a couple major parts of the book are changed (and I'm not sure why) - including one very important detail about a main character. However, the movie still brought me to tears, just like the book. =) The depiction of Alex is dead on, and it was so amazing to hear the words that I had read being used on screen. The cinematography was absolutely gorgeous - it totally makes me want to visit the Ukraine. I think one of my favourite lines (and I don't think this will give away any of the plot) was when Jonathan asked what had happened to the bombed out buildings and Alex answers "Soviets...independence." Chilling. Go see this movie. If you have read the book, I think you will enjoy like I did seeing the characters come to life. If you haven't, you will be thrown into a story so rich, funny and heartbreaking that you will never forget it.

I just saw "Everything is Illuminated" at the Telluride Film Festival. This is a truly remarkable film. Very emotional, funny at times and heart-warming. Bring your handkerchiefs! For those of you who enjoy a movie that brings tears to your eyes, I'm reminded of the endings of "Babette's Feast" and "The Notebook." The stories were completely different but had that same emotional power to bring tears to my eyes, just as this film did.

No spoilers here. The summary is, as IMDb describes, a young man's journey to the Ukraine to follow his roots and find the village where his father grew up.

The dialog is in English and Ukrainian (and Russian too, I believe). This allows for some wonderfully linguistically-based moments as one character interprets, more or less faithfully, for the English speaker in the group, depending on the circumstances.

The scenery is wonderful and the musical score is a treat with wonderful Eastern European influences. Be sure you stay through the credits for the final tune.

This is Lieve Schreiber's directorial debut and is well done. I give this film a 9, one of the best films I've seen in a long time. I recommend it highly.

Everything is Illuminated is by far one of the best movies that I've seen recently. It has a very good mix of sad and hilarious, and it comes in phases. The beginning is funny, the ending is sad. In that, I think the movie does well, as its goal is to illustrate a serious topic.

I would have given the movie a higher rank, but I feel that the translation from Russian/Ukrainian into English is not done too well. At times, that is clearly deliberate. At times, I could not find a better way to re-tell the situation as it has a slight Lost in Translation effect. At times, it was just poorly done. Thankfully, there are very few poorly done moments. At one point, the English translation is a direct opposite of what the actors actually said.

However, I feel that a significant amount of the humor comes from a deliberate mis-translation from Russian to English. While some viewers may feel that they are left out, there are situations which are difficult to convey in a few phrases that have yeas of history and culture behind them. You definitely get the most out of this movie if you understand Russian. You get even more if you understand the cultural differences between primarily Russian-speaking Odessa and primarily Ukrainian-speaking L'viv. Some anecdotes are simply incorrect, albeit funny.

Regardless of the 8, I still add this movie to my favorites. I feel that much of what is incorrect is left as-is for a reason, and overall, the movie does very well to convey life in Ukraine (the old and the new), the friendliness, though maybe rough up-front, of the people and the story itself. Well done.