With the 1978 airing of NBC’s mini-series “Holocaust,” both television and Hollywood productions have addressed different aspects of that dark subject in world history during the past 30 years.

That being said, it may be tempting to dismiss “Defiance” as just another depiction in a long line of Holocaust dramas that resemble a sub-genre of films.

However, director Edward Zwick still manages to bring together a worthwhile drama about a relatively under-explored aspect of World War II. This movie deals specifically with Soviet-Jewish resistance to the heavy German onslaught and subsequent occupation of the Belarus Soviet state in 1941 and beyond.

The plot centers on three Jewish brothers: Tuvia Bielske (Daniel Craig), Zus (Liev Schreiber) and Asael (Jamie Bell), who attempt to flee the Nazi occupation and hide out in the forest.

According to some obscure historically factual accounts, the three brothers escape into the woods not only save themselves, but to strike back and avenge their parents’ deaths at the hands of the Nazi occupiers.

As it turns out, Tuvia and his brothers unwittingly become the leaders of some 1,200 other Jews who have organized into a clandestine resistance group fighting the occupation starting in August of 1941. Their war against the Nazi occupation continued for at least the next two years.

Of the three leading protagonists, Craig manages to best capture the essence of his character: a rough-cut, popularly drafted resistance leader, tempered by his family’s hard-bitten farm life. He was further tested by Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin’s man-made famines of few years previous to the German invasion.

Tuvia’s rugged leadership ability is also enhanced by some of his followers’ biblical mentioning of Moses leading people out of Egypt and gives the character a sharper emotional edge than in previous roles. Craig played James Bond in 2006’s “Casino Royale” and in last year’s “Quantum of Solace.” Craig even manages to render a tough, bold and cool persona that rivals the one he performed as an Israeli hit man in Steven Spielberg’s “Munich”—a failed attempt by the director to morally cloud issues surrounding the War on Terrorism.

“Defiance” also dwells sufficiently on the gradual division between Tuvia and Zus as Zus becomes more interested in direct confrontation with the Nazi conquerors than just surviving capture by them.

Zus’ more “defiant” approach leads him to join a tattered remnant of the Soviet Union’s Red Army which happens upon the tentative Jewish community as the story unfolds.

Beside producing believable characters, Zwick also effectively delivers well when it comes to scenery and atmosphere—particularly in his depiction of the Jewish community’s primitive survival in the snow-laden winter of 1941-42. The snowy scenes can make audiences almost feel the weather’s chill.

One technical flaw seems to be Zwick’s over influence by a recent filming technique, which has developed during the past 10 years: A focus on using dull, rather then deep cinematographic colors.

As for dramatic effect, “Defiance” falls far short of Zwick’s best work—1989’s Oscar winning Civil War epic “Glory,” about the experimental formation and combat use of black soldiers in the Union Army.

“Defiance” particularly lacks “Glory’s” musical score which added tremendously to that film’s emotional weight.

Nevertheless, while cinematic presentations of historical subjects may not always offer new information about a given topic, “Defiance” shows that figuring out the meaning of history will always be an evolving art and worth pursuing.



Cast: Daniel Craig, Liev Shrieber, Jamie Bell

Director: Edward Zwick

Rated: R for violence and language

Running time: 137 minutes