We just got back from “Defiance” and let it be known that the film is nowhere near as bad as the early Variety review had led us all to believe, or at least strongly suggested. We’re not really fans of Edward Zwick, he hasn’t made a great film since “Courage Under Fire” in 1996 (not amazing, but very underrated) and before that the Academy Award-winning, “Glory” in 1989.
Variety called it “flat” and “unexceptionally told back in mid November, but that’s exceptionally harsh and cold. The film does suffer from a distended mid-section that left us a little restless in the middle and yes the conclusion does dare to sport the dreaded deus ex machina, but the picture can be as moving as anything Zwick’s ever done or at least in spots. Surely, it’s 10 times more penetrating that “Blood Diamond” or “The Last Samurai” (the latter being a total dud).
We’re not necessarily going to bat for the film, it’s not Top 10 material, but it is capable and economic and a vast improvement on the original script. The version we read was a May 1, 2007 one just credited to Zwick and after we read it, we figured that Variety was correct, because it was hackneyed and cliche-ridden, but the final version on screen is credited to Zwick and Clayton Frohman who wrote the original true-life book in which the film was based on. Either its a courtesy credit or Frohman really helped out, but either way, Zwick wisely dispensed with almost all the formulaic and ham-fisted elements in the version we read (the script once began with a bookended flashback scene that is wisely dropped). Zwick doesn’t tend to be very subtle, but a lot of the story is very mannered especially a lot of relationship scenes in the film that threaten to push it over into the saccharine territory that he wisely dials back (Daniel Craig’s “romance” with the beautiful Alexa Davalos in the original script was absolutely cornball, but in the feature version its gracefully under control and thankfully very understated). “Defiance” has some semi-troubling elements, Liev Schreiber’s character is a one-note brute and of course there’s that aforementioned Calvary that saves the day, but for the most part its a well-crafted film that’s nothing to be embarrassed by.
Wait, what’s it about? It’s the true-life story of three Jewish brothers who escaped from Nazi-occupied Poland into the Belarussian forest and created a resistance group and endeavored to build a village in order to protect themselves and others in danger (the film also stars Jamie Bell as one of the brothers, Craig and Schreiber are the other main two and Mia Wasikowska as Bell’s “forest wife.”)
“Defiance” has had a rough go of things, having been almost pushed out of 2008 for a December 31 release (is it even eligible for an Oscar if its released the 31st??). Now let’s not overstate the case or get us wrong, Oscar is probably not in the cards for the film, but its almost as strong as something as “Frost/Nixon” (or at least as enjoyable anyhow), so it will find some support (some commenters have noted its already appearing on some Top 10 lists). We’re almost sure, James Newton Howard is a sure-fire nominee for Best Score – the music in the film was tremendously moving without being too sentimental and the cinematography of Eduardo Serra with those wintry landscapes and popping, verdant forests was quite beautiful as well. [B-]
