Defiance (2008)

Jewish brothers in Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe escape into the Belarussian forests, where they join Russian resistance fighters, and endeavor to build a village, in order to protect themselves and about one thousand Jewish non-combatants.

Director:

Edward Zwick

Writers:

Clayton Frohman (screenplay), Edward Zwick (screenplay)

Stars:

Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, Jamie Bell

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Daniel Craig	...	Tuvia Bielski
Liev Schreiber	...	Zus Bielski
Jamie Bell	...	Asael Bielski
Alexa Davalos	...	Lilka Ticktin
Allan Corduner	...	Shimon Haretz
Mark Feuerstein	...	Isaac Malbin
Tomas Arana	...	Ben Zion Gulkowitz
Jodhi May	...	Tamara Skidelsky
Kate Fahy	...	Riva Reich
Iddo Goldberg	...	Yitzhak Shulman
Iben Hjejle	...	Bella
Martin Hancock	...	Peretz Shorshaty
Ravil Isyanov	...	Viktor Panchenko
Jacek Koman	...	Konstanty 'Koscik' Kozlowski
George MacKay	...	Aron Bielski

Storyline

On the run and hiding in the deep forests of the then German-occupied Poland and Belorussia (World War II), the four Bielski brothers find the impossible task of foraging for food and weapons for their survival. They live, not only with the fear of discovery, contending with neighboring Soviet partisans and knowing whom to trust but also take the responsibility of looking after a large mass of fleeing Polish Jews from the German war machine. Women, men, children, the elderly and the young alike are all hiding in makeshift homes in the dark, cold and unforgiving forests in the darkest times of German-occupied Eastern Europe.

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Plot Keywords:

partisan | hiding | polish jew | anti semitism | shoah | 

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Taglines:

From the director of Blood Diamond and The Last Samurai.

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Genres:

Action | Drama | History | Thriller | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and language

Details

Official Sites:

Metropolitan Films [France] Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA

Language:

English German Russian

Release Date:

16 January 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Desafío

Filming Locations:

Lithuania

Box Office

Budget:

$32,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$123,513, 4 January 2009, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$28,644,813, 30 April 2009

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$51,155,219, 31 December 2008

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Vantage, Grosvenor Park Productions, The Bedford Falls Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

137 min 160 min (extended)

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color Black and White (archive footage)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was shot in a remote, wooded area in Lithuania, about a hundred miles away from the real location of the Bielski brothers camp.

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Goofs

At one point in the movie, a title indicates "October 1941" yet the trees are as green as in summer-time. At this time of the year in that climate they would be half-bare and with mostly yellow leaves. Likewise, in April trees wouldn't be fully dressed with leaves yet, but rather just start to bloom.

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Quotes

Zus Bielski: What is it we are good for, Viktor? Dying.

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Connections

References Come and See (1985)

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Soundtracks

A Tants Fun Propoisk
Traditional
Arranged by Dmitri Zisl Slepovitch

User Reviews

Mastering many languages is normal in Europe

I've registered here just to write that I'm amazed by some reviews pointing that Zwick was inaccurate or illiterate when making his film. And it's really amusing to read that 'partisans couldn't speak Russian because Naliboki was a Polish town'.

Naliboki is a town in the very center of present Belarus. It's a point were cultures mixed. For many centuries everybody here mastered at least 3 languages, and elder Belski spoke 6 of them: Yiddish, Hebrew, Polish, Belarusian, Russian, German. It's not so impossible, I may assure you:)

Actually, Russian is appropriate only in episodes when Zus Belski talks to a Soviet partisans' commander - that guy was from Moscow. I'm pretty sure, that in reality Jews talked to their neighbors in Yiddish and got answers in Polish or Belarusian. As for Belskies, they where the only Jewish family in their village, so they should master Slavic languages perfectly.