The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008)

Set during WWII, a story seen through the innocent eyes of Bruno, the eight-year-old son of the commandant at a German concentration camp, whose forbidden friendship with a Jewish boy on the other side of the camp fence has startling and unexpected consequences.

Director:

Mark Herman

Writers:

John Boyne (novel), Mark Herman (screenplay)

Stars:

Asa Butterfield, David Thewlis, Rupert Friend

7 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Asa Butterfield	...	Bruno
Zac Mattoon O'Brien	...	Leon (as Zac Mattoon-O'Brien)
Domonkos Németh	...	Martin
Henry Kingsmill	...	Karl
Vera Farmiga	...	Mother
Cara Horgan	...	Maria
Zsuzsa Holl	...	Berlin Cook
Amber Beattie	...	Gretel
László Áron	...	Lars
David Thewlis	...	Father
Richard Johnson	...	Grandpa
Sheila Hancock	...	Grandma
Charlie Baker	...	Palm Court Singer
Iván Verebély	...	Meinberg
Béla Fesztbaum	...	Schultz

Storyline

Young Bruno lives a wealthy lifestyle in prewar Germany along with his mother, elder sister, and SS Commandant father. The family relocates to the countryside where his father is assigned to take command a prison camp. A few days later, Bruno befriends another youth, strangely dressed in striped pajamas, named Shmuel who lives behind an electrified fence. Bruno will soon find out that he is not permitted to befriend his new friend as he is a Jew, and that the neighboring yard is actually a prison camp for Jews awaiting extermination. Shmuel papa disappears and Shmule bring back a striped pajamas. Bruno puts them on and they both go look for Shmuel papa

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Plot Keywords:

jew | boy | nazis | poison gas | fence | 

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Taglines:

Zäune trennen, doch Hoffnung eint. (Fences divide, but hope unites.)

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some mature thematic material involving the Holocaust

Details

Official Sites:

Miramax Films [United States] Official Facebook

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

26 November 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Filming Locations:

Hungary

Box Office

Budget:

$12,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£513,653 (United Kingdom), 14 September 2008, Limited Release

Opening Weekend USA:

$253,085, 9 November 2008, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$9,030,581, 18 January 2009

Company Credits

Production Co:

Miramax,BBC Films,Heyday Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

There were no working children in Auschwitz. They were all executed on arrival. Only those in teenage years who could work were allowed to live in forced labour.

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Goofs

At Auscwhwitz, (and other camps) there were double fences, 3 meters apart, around the compound. Too much distance for an outsider to touch an insider.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Mother: Hello, sweetheart.
Bruno: Mum, what's going on?
Mother: We're celebrating.
Bruno: Celebrating?
Mother: Mm, your father's been given a promotion.
Gretel: That means a better job.
Bruno: I know what promotion is.
Mother: So we're having a little party to celebrate.
Bruno: He's still going to be a soldier though, isn't he?
[...]

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Crazy Credits

Quotation displayed before the opening titles: "Childhood is measured out by sounds and smells and sights, before the dark hour of reason grows - John Betjeman"

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Connections

Referenced in Friendship Beyond the Fence (2009)

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Soundtracks

Mein Regiment, mein Heimatland
Adapted from Traditional Soldier's Song
Performed by Singschar der Kradschützen-Kompanie der Aufklärungs Abt.3
Courtesy of The Tomahawk Films
WW-II German Archive, UK

User Reviews

A movie that everyone must watch

I was sitting at the very back row of Cineworld, Dublin screen nine and struggling with my tears. I thought it would be extremely embarrassing if people see tears in my eyes. But I was so wrong! The lady sitting beside me was crying like anything. Finally we ended up with the move and it started showing casts on its black screen. But, not a single person moved from his seat or probably lost their (including myself) power to move. The only sound I heard was the sound of people's emotion. Guy sitting one row before me hugged his girlfriend who were crying like a little kid. The guy himself was also in tear. I saw a girl from Cineworld cleaning staff with horrifying red eyes. Everyone was spellbound there!

I am talking about the movie THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PYJAMAS, unexpectedly a too good movie. I didn't have a single clue about the movie itself and just tried to explore something new. Fortunately or unfortunately, Bruno (main cast of the movie), a young 8-years old kid who love to explore new world explored too much for us that made us all cry while leaving the cinema. I just don't want to spoil your entertainment by giving hints about the story. Rather, I would suggest you to watch the movie and discover some critical facts that sometime we forget in this heartless world.

THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PYJAMAS, a movie from an Irish writer and an English director; everyone must watch. If you tell me to rate, I would say, 1 to 10 scale is not enough to rate this movie. We better keep it above rating!