A slow start but once Winter in Wartime really gets into its rhythm it is impossible to look away from the faultless filmmaking, impressive acting, and a plot with real meaning, that is of a teenaged boy who learns about the brutal realities of war.
It’s been a long time since I’ve sat down to watch a foreign language film. I don’t know why, I guess they are sometimes far too easy to overlook as we are bombarded daily by the onslaught of films from Hollywood and other English speaking film industries. There are so many different and wonderful films out there and one such film is the subtitled Winter in Wartime.
The story takes place in the cold and snowy setting of Nazi occupied Holland. It is January 1945 and the residents of a small town are struggling to live on rations and appease the German soldiers who are everywhere just waiting for an excuse to take someone in for questioning and worse. While the town mayor tries his best to keep the residents safe his son Michiel (Martijn Lakemeier ) is defiant in his hatred of the Nazis and by chance becomes involved in helping a young RAF pilot. Jack (Jamie Campbell Bower - Harry Potter: Deathly Hallows and Twilight New Moon ) is hiding out in the forest after crash landing. His leg is seriously injured and he has no choice but to accept the help of a naive but eager 14-year-old and eventually his older sister Erica (Melody Klaver ) who nurses him back to health. They hatch a plan to get him across a river and into the safe hands of contacts in a nearby town but this proves exceptionally difficult with Germans and the real threat of betrayal at every turn.
The situation becomes even more desperate when a dead Nazi trooper is found and the hunt for the killer commences threatening Michiel’s family in the process. Despite the danger Michiel heroicly continues to help Jack escape but at what cost?
I was honestly impressed with this film. It is little wonder that it has been praised by film critics worldwide, was an Dutch box office sensation, and was shortlisted to the last nine for Best Foreign Language Film in the 2010 Academy Awards. Winter in Wartime is due for release on DVD and Blu-Ray on May 31.
Verdict: 4.5/5
