“The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” really delivers. The World War 2 drama based on John Boyne’s novel of the same name is directed by Mark Herman and stars Asa Butterfield as an 8-year old boy named Bruno who must leave his life and friends behind to follow his SS officer father (David Thewlis) and family when they move from Berlin to a remote house in Poland. Bruno becomes bored with simply staying within the boundaries of the house and against his mother’s (Vera Farmiga) warnings he goes exploring outside the grounds and finds what he believes to be a farm. Bruno discovers a barbed wire fence and meets a young boy in striped pajamas named Shmuel (Jack Scanlon) on the other side of it, this turns out to actually be a young Jewish boy imprisoned in a extermination camp which is assumed to be Auschwitz.
This movie hit me right off the bat when I saw that Bruno’s SS father was played by David Thewlis, who may be most recognized for his role as Remus Lupin from the Harry Potter series, he is great in this movie, and his character can be very chilling at times. The two boys in the movie were seriously outstanding for the type of roles they were asked to play, for kids that young to do a movie like this, it’s just incredible. The acting in this film was so good in this film you almost forget about one of the bigger names in the film, Vera Farmiga (The Departed, Orphan) who played Bruno’s mother. She is such a complex character you almost can’t figure her out, Bruno’s mother acts like the “Jews” aren’t people but then she makes an almost complete turnaround when a Jewish man helps Bruno, going as far as thanking him.
The Film really hits you on an emotional level, it’s really hard not to tear up a bit when you see these kids separated and they don’t understand why. Most of the movie the biggest villain may be the fence between these kids, you might find it funny but you will literally find yourself rooting against a fence. The fence to me was as much a metaphor for the differences that separate them as it is the literal barrier that keeps them apart. The film continued to make me wonder if a child can see that it’s wrong, why can’t you?
My biggest complaint out of the entire film was all just one scene that really bothered me. One character named Kurt Kotler, also an SS soldier, was a terrible person throughout his entire time in the film, yet when it’s time for him to leave he says goodbye and it almost feels like the director want you to have sympathy for him as he walks out. All I could think is, are you serious? Overall, this movie was fantastic and I would definitely recommend going out and buying this one, it’s one of those films that everyone needs to see once, you won’t regret it.