Defiance (2008)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Edward Zwick

Writers (WGA):

Clayton Frohman (screenplay) and
Edward Zwick (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

16 January 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller | War

Tagline:

Freedom begins with an act of defiance!

Plot:

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 1,000 Jewish non-combatants.

Plot Keywords:

Forest | Brothers | Jewish | Partisan | Survival

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

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

MPAA:

Rated R for violence and language.

Runtime:

137 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German | Russian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #44522) | Australia:M | UK:15 | Ireland:15A | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Czech Republic:15 | Portugal:M/12 | Finland:K-15 | New Zealand:M | Norway:15 | Hong Kong:IIB | Sweden:15 | Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Lithuania

Company:

Bedford Falls Company, The

Trivia:

Extras were brought in and asked to strip naked for the scene where Aron stumbles upon the mass grave at the beginning of the movie.

Goofs:

Continuity: After Zus and Tuvia fight each other, Zus gets up and the bottom of his jacket is flipped up. Cut to another angle, it is down. As Zus leaves past him, it is up again.

Quotes:

Asael Bielski: Nothing is impossible, what we all have done is impossible!

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards (2009) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Oy, Pri Luzhku, Pri Luzhke

Daniel Craig at this best

I was able to see this movie before it officially got out, and i was very impressed with this movie. I was dying to see Defiance because i'm a huge Jamie Bell fan, and the story seemed really interesting, but i was kind of worried cause Daniel Craig is not exactly one of my favorite actors, but he really impressed me. I think this is his best movie yet. And it's not just the acting, but i think the way they told this story is very efficient, and the sets were incredible. I think they truly stuck to the story of what really happened back then, and believe me, you will not be disappointed with this movie. Jamie Bell was wonderful as Asael (as usual), Liev Schreiber was great, and Daniel Craig was just as great. In my opinion, this movie is a must-see.