Defiance - Film Review

Defiance...
             For my next film analysis I decided to review the film 'Defiance'. It is a tale set during the Holocaust, telling the story of two brother who sympathies with the Jews and end up from just trying to survive in a forest, after their village was destroyed by the Nazis, to leading a camp of hundreds of Jew survivors hiding from the Germans until the war is over. The film cast is sprinkled with stars, big names such as Daniel Craig and was directed by Edward Zwick.
The film isn't marketed as a Thriller film, however, I wanted to analyse it because while i was watching i found myself captivated in the suspense and tension of the story.
I wanted to talk about techniques used in this film relating to story and creating suspense. I talk a lot about how films create suspense or tension because it is one of the conventions of the Thriller genre and without creating this tension or suspense it would no longer be a Thriller film. Defiance has the luxury of there already being an overarching tension because of when and where the film is set, during the Holocaust. Constantly throughout the film the audience is worried that the Germans will suddenly arrive and kill everyone or how the Survivors will survive in this massive forest without any food, water or shelter. On top of this there is also animosity between the survivors, creating infighting, dividing the audience and creating bonds between the characters and the audience.

There is one scene that sticks out in my mind after watching this film. The camp had been stuck with typhoid and it is the middle of an Eastern European Winter (Snow, Ice, freezing temperatures). There has been two bullies living in the camp, intimidating other members of the camp and taking more food than they are entitled too. The main character (Daniel Craig) is ill with the virus and hasn't been seen in days. In this time, these bullies have decided to take charge of the camp, against his orders. The scene itself starts with an extraordinarily long line of sick people waiting to receive food, while the bullies eat like kings. Daniel Craig is forced to go and deal with the situation, obviously very weak and tired. The scene ends with Daniel Craig being humiliated before suddenly turning around and shooting the ringleader, the rest of the bullies quickly falling into place. The main reason that this scene sticks out to me is because the audience almost cheers at the death of the ringleader, we feel happy about this person being murdered. This is such a strange and deranged idea that it really made an impact on me.

This film at its core is a WWII Action Thriller. With loads of guns and violence, however with complex undertones of survival, love and politics. I personally really enjoyed this film for those reasons providing a perfect mix of action, dialogue and interaction. While not particularly innovative or groundbreaking both technically or story wise, the film was still a good time.

In conclusion, I found a few different ways to create tension. Rather than environmental things such as music, I could use how the characters interact and what they do will create suspense which i will try to incorporate in my film making.