I've always been a sucker for real life stories. Favoring them over plots written by an out of work actors over a cup of coffee at a local Sturbucks.
I read the book "The Bielski Brothers" by Peter Duffy a few years ago I thought it was a great soaring story. Then, I saw the movie "Defiance" last night, and I didn't know whether to give it 7 or 10.
The movie did portray the story as I remembered reading it. It rang true in my mind, and in my gut. It had the same feel as the written word, and it evoked identical feelings in my heart – and for that, an accurate adaptation of the book, I have to give it 10.
However, the movie is not a blockbuster hit. What might have worked great in a book – keeping reader in suspense throughout the few nights it takes to read it, did not work in the movie. The silver screen is missing the silver lining - there is no climax in the movie. The action does not built up slowly to a pivotal point, but rather the tension is static from the very beginning to the very end (just like I remember it from the book and like it probably would have been in real life).
If you are looking forward to watching a true story being told, than you will be very pleased with "Defiance". But if you believe that the truth and reality could have (or should have) been sacrificed in order to accomplish a better movie, than you might walk away unfulfilled.
Never-the-less, to me, it was a great story to read, and a grate story to watch, and I recommend it to anyone interested in the WWII period.
I read the book "The Bielski Brothers" by Peter Duffy a few years ago I thought it was a great soaring story. Then, I saw the movie "Defiance" last night, and I didn't know whether to give it 7 or 10.
The movie did portray the story as I remembered reading it. It rang true in my mind, and in my gut. It had the same feel as the written word, and it evoked identical feelings in my heart – and for that, an accurate adaptation of the book, I have to give it 10.
However, the movie is not a blockbuster hit. What might have worked great in a book – keeping reader in suspense throughout the few nights it takes to read it, did not work in the movie. The silver screen is missing the silver lining - there is no climax in the movie. The action does not built up slowly to a pivotal point, but rather the tension is static from the very beginning to the very end (just like I remember it from the book and like it probably would have been in real life).
If you are looking forward to watching a true story being told, than you will be very pleased with "Defiance". But if you believe that the truth and reality could have (or should have) been sacrificed in order to accomplish a better movie, than you might walk away unfulfilled.
Never-the-less, to me, it was a great story to read, and a grate story to watch, and I recommend it to anyone interested in the WWII period.