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Europa Europa

Rating

Director

Agnieszka Holland

Screenplay

Agnieszka Holland (Memoir: Solomon Perel)

Length

1h 52m

Starring

Marco Hofschneider, André Wilms, Ashley Wanninger, Klaus Abramowsky, Michèle Gleizer, Delphine Forest, René Hofschneider, Julie Delpy, Hanns Zischler

MPAA Rating

R

Review

There have been dozens of films on the Holocaust and each one looks at the events with a different view and each with a separate view and each with its own brand of tear-enducing storytelling. “Europa Europa” takes a look at the war from a German perspective, yet with all the views and sorrow that Hollywood Holocaust films contain.

Not all sorrow, however, is bad. Agnieszka Holland knows this and has crafted a sometimes disturbing, sometimes gut-wrenching, sometimes fantastical view of a young Jewish boy who masquerades first as a Russian, then as a German.

“Europa” follows young Solomon Perel (Marco Hofschneider as a child and Solomon Perel himself as an adult) as he escapes his Polish home during the German invasion and occupation of Poland. He escapes with his brother Isaak (René Hofschneider) across a river, but they get separated during the trip. Solomon is thrown from the boat and swims ashore amid a group of Russian soldiers.

He grows up inside of a Communist school where he acts so much like his Socialist companions that it’s hard to understand how he still remembers his Jewish history. When the school is bombarded, he escapes with his comrades in a wagon train.

They are stopped on the road by Germans and captured. When they arrive at the POW camp, Solomon gets separated from his comrades and is asked who he is. In perfect German, he says that he is one of them and is accepted with little trouble.

Solomon spends several years behind the lines as a Russian translator and spends most of his time trying to hide his circumcision from the others in his platoon.

“Europa Europa” is a somewhat long movie, but never loses its impact. It is quite intriguing how Solomon continuously masquerades as different types of people.

There are several sequences where Solomon imagines various images, such as Hitler dancing with Stalin among others. Each of these sequences can be interpreted differently. His vision of Hitler and Stalin together seem to be about his internal conflict trying to rationalize who he is and what he’s doing.

The performances are quite good, as are all of the production values. The strength of the film, however, comes from Holland’s masterful writing and direction. She moves effortlessly from scene to scene all the while keeping the story concise and interesting.

“Europa Europa” is a wonderful movie, but not for everyone. The subtitles are sometimes hard to follow; so most viewers won’t be likely to follow the film easily. However, anyone who enjoys foreign films or doesn’t mind the subtitles, length or depth of subject will likely enjoy this film.

Review Written

August 25, 1999