I was informed only last night of a showing, this night, of a new movie from Paramount, Defiance, based on Jewish partisans fighting in the forests of Europe in WWII. Apparently, the film is currently only slated for release in the NY/NJ area. However, this evening, at the Westminster Theaters off of the Boulder Turnpike, there will be a screening of the film to gauge interest.
You can see the trailer here: www.defiancetrailer.com.
I haven't seen the movie, so I can only speculate about the direction it takes, but hey, that's what bloggers do, right?
The fact is, this sort of thing is both important, and difficult to pull off. Some of the conflicts within the group would seem to be obvious - those who don't want to fight, for instance -, and it's hard work to keep those storylines from being predictable.
At the same time, we today are used to the notion that Jewish blood isn't cheap, in large part thanks to Israel's success and survival. There was a time when that wasn't so, and a film that honors without sentimentalizing those who worked to change that literally dreadful state of affairs can serve a real purpose.
Email Gene Levy (genelevy@comcast.net) for information and for a pass.
UPDATE: I've corrected Gene's email address.