Courageous film from Spielberg

Rating: 7/10 (1 July 2007)

Holocaust drama from director Steven Spielberg, with an intense, sweeping scope, a brave focus, and also some iconic movie-star gloss, with Liam Neeson lit up and photographed à la Humphrey Bogart in "Casablanca". Despite this formulaic style, Neeson is very good playing Oskar Schindler, a decadent member of the Nazi party who nevertheless was a reluctant savior to some 1,100 Jews during WWII when he employed them in his factory, saving them from certain death in Hitler's concentration camps. Spielberg won a Best Director Oscar for the film, and he gets terrific supporting performances from Ben Kingsley, Embeth Davidtz, and most especially Ralph Fiennes as a despicable Nazi commandant. Some of the human terror depicted is frighteningly real, and even though the last act smacks of Hollywood grand-standing, the movie has unlimited power. Winner of seven Oscars in all, including Best Picture. *** from ****