What is the nature power ? How normal people transform when they find themselves at either end of power ?
This period drama from Czechoslovakia presents an enlightening study on the dynamics of power and its startling effects on the human psyche and behaviour. The movie covers a time span that commences prior to the onset of Second World War (1937) till the events that immediately follow the war.
The movie tells the story of an apparently lower middle class Slav couple, Josef Cizek (an enderaring Boleslav Polivka) and his wife Marie (a spirited Anna Siskova), who appear to resign themselves to a state of indolence and remaining indoors during the Nazi occupation. Although Marie is keen to raise kids, Josef appears reluctant and consequently, they remain childless. Josef has had a recent accident resulting in a limp and he prefers to laze around the house shunning all activity. Horst Prohaska (Jaroslav Dušek), a friend of Josef, is a Nazi symapthiser and visits them occasionally. He works for the local Nazi official Kepke (Martin Huba) and is involved in confiscating property from local Jews. Horst repeatedly badgers the lazy Josef to take up job similar to his with the Nazis which Josef declines. Horst is an opportunist with an eye on the beautiful Marie and is keen to exploit, what he sees as, her disgruntlement at her inability to raise any kids despite yearning for them, owing to the steadfast reluctance of Josef.
The peaceful existence Josef and Marie goes for a toss when Josef meets David (Csonger Kassai), the only surviving member of a Jewish family which had employed Josef, and now, a fugitive on the run from a German concentration camp. While Josef abhors Nazis and the occupation and cannot turn over David to them which would result in a certain death to David, he is also reluctant to provide shelter and risk his and Marie's lives. Yet, the better nature of the couple prevails over their fears of self-preservation and they end up providing shelter to David, even if it results in them going to great lengths to rearrange their own affairs to avoid any suspicion. A reluctant Josef is forced to take up the job offer of Horst and joins him in confiscating properties of Jews. This turns the neighbourhood against Josef and Marie who are seen as turncoats and evil opportunists. Yet, they remain quiet owing to the fear of the Nazi occupiers and restrict their reactions to an occasional barb across the window or plain glaring.
The rest of the movie narrates the consequences of the decision of the couple to shelter the Jew in a narrative that is suspenseful and peppered with mildly comical elements even as it shuns melodrama. Much of the movie happens within the confines of the couple's apartment and the neighbourhood.
Despite the well-known fact that it is rare to find humans as entirely good or evil, most movies on war and the holocaust tend to adopt a simplistic approach and paint the characters as plain blacks and whites. It is heartening that the director, Jan Hrebejk, steers clear of this simplistic approach and presents us with characters which are well fleshed out and realistic. None of the main characters can be confined to any straightjacketed slots as entirely good or evil and by the end of the movie, we see them straddle a wide spectrum of emotions and reactions depending the circumstances, they find themselves in. These characters are brought to life by a set of aptly cast artists who breathe life into their complex roles and make them utterly believable and relatable. As a result, the viewer is able to forge an effortless connect with the characters and is kept deeply interested in the unfolding events.
At an early juncture in the movie, Josef wonders as under -
''You wouldn't believe what abnormal times do to normal people,''
This profound observation underlines the essence of this brilliant movie that is a tour de force on transformations of (in)human nature under the influence of war. The movie chronicles the triumph of human spirit in a chaotic world where good and evil are not the opposites which are miles apart, rather, they merely represent the two sides of the same coin.
This movie was a final nominee for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and despite losing to the eventual winner "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon", it is, indeed, a worthy contestant.
A MUST WATCH !!
P.S. - You can catch this movie on UTV WORLD MOVIES channels which airs it frequently.
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