Schindler's List: A Story About Jews
In Schindler’s List (1993), starring Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley, and Ralph Fiennes, the story of the German entrepreneurthat saved the lives of over 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust, Oskar Schindler, is recounted. Closely following the true story, the film vividly recounts the details of Schindler’s experiences during the Nazi occupation of Europe as he undergoes a transformation from an ambition businessman looking to exploit cheap labor to a compassionate savior of lives. As Schindler observes the brutality of the Nazis, he gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish laborers and takes action in their defense.
While the film focuses on the story of one man and his compassionate acts, the broader context is during WWII, and takes place over the course of six years, from the invasion of Poland in 1939 to the end of the war in 1945, during which occurred wasthe Holocaust, the systematic genocide of over 7 million victims, mainly Jews. This era is extremely important to modern history, as WWII takes the place as the century’s defining moment and effectively influenced every aspect of life due to the US dominated position post-war. The Holocaust, a crucial aspect of WWII, is also extremely influential in modern history, as it became the quintessential example of racism and evil for all of humanity. Specifically, the film’s setting is in Eastern Europe, mainly Poland, and later, Czechoslovakia. This is key, as the Nazi occupation was most brutal in this area, as well as the fact that this area held the largest Jewish population in Europe. This combination resulted in the focusing of the Holocaust’s labor and concentration centers into this area.
From this film, I learned some interesting things. While a WWII buff, and already knowledgeable in the area, the film provided new insights into the Holocaust and in the occupation of Poland. To start, I was unaware of the uniform treatment of all Polish cities during the occupation. Most of my knowledge of the occupation of Poland comes from Warsaw, and seeing the same experience in Kraków told me of this consistency. I was also unaware of how closely the civilian population interacted with the German military. This is seen quite extensively in the film, as Schindler is constantly doting upon officers for their support, or bribing them for their silence. I also did not know that the German military might buy their equipment from a civilian, no less, Polish, supplier, as Schindler sells his kitchenware to German officers (who would distribute them to his troops for them to eat out of on the frontlines). Lastly, I was unaware of the use of female Jewish laborers as maids for the commanding Nazi officer of the camp. This relationship also interested me, as Goeth constantly battles between his zeal and belief of the Nazi ideology and his desire for his maid, Helen. Overall, the film enlightened me in many aspects in which I was not aware beforehand.
One quote that struck me very much was when Schindler says to Goeth, “Power is when we have every justification to kill and we don’t.” I thought this is a very powerful quote as it has much truth behind it, but it was also a subtle way for Schindler to try and convince Goeth to stop killing Jews. In the scene, Schindler explains to Goeth that when logic says to kill a Jew, and you don’t, that is power; the ability to decide if one lives or dies based not on rules, is power. This idea is quite interesting to think about, but again, it was very moving in the subtly of Schindler’s attempts to pacify Goeth.
Based on my previous knowledge, this film is extremely accurate. To start, the film is based off the true story of Oskar Schindler, and follows it quite closely. Even if it were a generic film about the Holocaust, though, it would still be accurate. The setting, characters, speech, clothing, architecture, etc., everything is extremely accurate. I do not know if anyone but the main characters (Schindler, Stern, and Goeth)arereal in the film, but otherwise it is accurate to the story and to the setting.
The overall purpose of this film was to bring to light the incredible story and heroic actions of Oskar Schindler. While it may seem that is was to further show the evils of the Holocaust, it was not it’s main objective. This sentiment had already been spread and made commonplace in the minds of the public by many mediums before it, including movies, books, news, and the Nuremberg trials. The real purpose of the film was to expose Schindler’s compassion and selfless acts that saved thousands of lives. This is seen in the ending of the film, as all the Schindlerjuden and the actors who played them walked by and placed a stone upon his grave. Today, there are over 7,000 descendants of the Jews Schindler saved. People who save this many lives deserve to be recognized. The film attempts to accomplish this.
As an audience, we are expected to reaffirm our knowledge of the evils and racism of the Holocaust, and also to learn about and admire the heroics of Schindler. By following the story of the Jewish laborers and experiencing the occupation and brutality of the Nazis, the audiences does reacts the above ways.
The films has been extremely successful, both in reception as a film, winning seven Oscars and is constantly named on top 10 movie lists, and also in spreading it’s mission of bringing to light Schindler’s story. The film is a household name, and by subsequent, Schindler himself. His grave is a popular tourist attraction and pilgrimage site in Jerusalem. So all in all, the film has been a huge success, and it’s mission of bringing to light Schindler’s story was accomplished.
