In Darkness

Hard to watch some scenes but not a show stopper - get through those to enjoy the joyful ending which restores my faith in people.Thanks recommend

IN DARKNESS is based on the true story of a group of people who survived the violent destruction of the Jewish "ghetto" by escaping into the sewers of Lvov, Poland. For 14 months they endured unimaginable hardship surving through the help of a Polish sewer worker named Leopold Socha.Although there is nothing much new in this story, it is still rivoting. There have been countless stories about a small group of Jewish men and women surving the horrors of Nazi evils in World War II. This is just one more story, and of course, all the stories of survival againts all odds are worth knowing.Dozens escape into the sewers as the Nazis are exterminating the ghetto and killing randomly and dragging everyone else to concentration camps. When the encounter Socha on his rounds in the sewers, he offers to help only 11 and for a price. He can't save everyone but he can take 11 away to a more secluded area.Here is where the story of mistrust, deceit, compassion and heroism take over.Director Agnieszka Holland takes us on another harrowing story of survival during World War II. The group fo 11 whittles down to a smaller group and Socha must keep his secret from the world as he also must feed several extra mouths during a time of food shortages. Although we see the people living in the sewers, the story seems a bit sanitized. How did they deal with the filth and the horrific odors. We see kids treating the rats as almost pets. Despite the horrific environment, life goes and on and people still have the desire to have sex and be physically close. It is amazing.There is a twist to this story that can be found in the Extra Features on the disc. Here is where the real gem of the film shines. Unbeknownst to director Agnieszka Holland, one of the survivors of the sewer was still very much alive. Krystyna Chiger was a small child with her brother and parents in the sewers. It's surprising that Holland did not discover this fact until AFTER her film was completed. In one of the extra features, Holland interviews Chiger about her experiences in the sewer. Chiger had no input in the making of the film but praised Holland for its realism and accuracy. I could have spent hours listening to Chiger tell her story. There have been countless films about the Holocaust and how groups of people survived the horrific odds. These films usually end with written words on the screen to give a brief synopsis of what happened to the survivors. How fascinating it would be to follow the survivors after their ordeal. How did they cope with the horrors? What was life like after the war--to have lost everything and everyone?IN DARKNESS is a testament to survival and the will to live.

Only in the darkness, we see true hope, sacrifice, courage. Watch this and be the one who stand up against the darkness of our time

I thought that this was a great movie to help you to understand what the Jews were up against during World War II to the extent that they had to hide underground for approximately a year or more, and The Bravery of those who tried to help them

I have avoided foreign films due subtitles all my 58 years, no more, films with them are as good as movies you don't need them for, don't be turned off due subtitles, "In Darkness" ranks up there with Anne Frank's Diary, if your History oriented and wish to see what those pore soles went threw, this is my 2nd subtitle film, I now have six others lined up to watch and will watch having gotten over the stigma of subs, if you felt some thing for Anne Franks story please, please give in to this movie, you will not in any way be turned off due the subtitles unless your still stigmatized with the fact of reading and understanding what your watching, very few places in this one are you over whelmed with reading to understand, a very meaningful true or based on a true story movie, a very much must watch or I'd not have written this review, I now will watch any film as long as the words aren't vanishing before I can read them, few times does it happen In Darkness

This DVD was very hard to watch because of the content. I watched it because it was based on the true story of thisPolish man who hid these dear Jewish people down in the sewers in Poland while evil raged above. May the world never forgetwhat happened while so many others looked away......including the church. You will need a strong constitution to view this.I own the DVD but can not watch it again. Far too upsetting. The worst for me was watching the new born little baby and how it had to besilenced so it would not give the others away, who were in hiding. I wish I could wipe that scene from my thoughts. I believe with all my heart thatGod will come and make things right.......for Israel and the nations.

With the notable exception(s) of Kieslowski's trilogy of films (Blue, White, and Red, especially Red), this is the finest Polish film that I've seen. In Darkness is powerful, unsentimental, and riveting.Amazingly, after the film was done, the director, Agnieszka Holland, discovered that a key character in the film version of this true WWII survival story--the little Jewish girl (Krysia Chiger)--was still alive. The two women met in Warsaw in 2011, and their conversation is replayed in one of the film's supplemental features. Here, Mrs. Krystyna Chiger-Karen (she had married Marion Karen, a survivor who had been helped by Oskar Schindler) spoke movingly about how "everything" that the director "put into the film was true."Agnieszka Holland can go toe-to-toe with the best of today's international film directors, and "In Darkness" is a testament to that truth, as well.PS. The video and audio quality of the bluray disc is very good.

A thought provoking film.It is a film about the major blot on man's history which was the Nazis of Germany during the middle of the last century.A Jewish family takes to living down in the sewers to avoid the mistreatment at the hands of the Nazis.A non Jewish sewer worker discovers them living underground, and initially effectively bribes them for his silence but, eventually takes pity on them and their plight and helps them.A different slant on a difficult time in mankind's chequered history. Well worth viewing.It should be noted that the film is in Polish with English subtitles.

If you like your films to have dramatic truth, this one is for you. The true story told here must have been difficult to translate to the screen, because what these Jews had to undergo as they were hunted like animals by the Nazis is pretty well un-describable.Despite the tough challenge, "In Darkness" gives us a gripping idea of what it must have been like. Three quarters of the scenes take place in underground tunnels and sewers, a tricky prospect for the cameraman, yet this tense film is a remarkable visual piece of work, and holds the attention from first scene to last.There is a memorable performance from the actor playing the ordinary character who is drawn into helping these desperate people in their struggle to survive. His conflicts about the right thing to do are well conveyed, and he is totally believable. Over two hours of viewing go so quickly as you are held by this extraordinary story. One of the most vivid films I've seen for a long time- Highly recommended.

This is not a conventional World War Two movie, despite the impression on the DVD cover. Based on true events it is an exploration of what it means to be human and how people will try to survive under the most appalling condtions. There are no cliched heros or heroics, just a gritty determination of human animals to keep going. We sat rivetted to this film and really didn't know what was going to happen next, unlike much Hollywood fare. The sewers are very convincing portrayed and there is no attempt to glamourise the story or the characters. The film does rather assume that you know the historical setting for this tale and may be some scene setting up front would have helped. The best film I've seen in a while.And if they ever decide to make a film 'Bono:the later years' the lead actor here is must for the title role.

Excellent re-enactment of the incredible lengths to which people had to go to avoid arrest and death at the hands of the Nazi's and their local collaborators during the occupation of Lvov in eastern Poland - now Ukraine. Similar in theme to the story of Anne Frank and her family who hid in an attic in Amsterdam -- this group hid, lived and loved in much more dangerous and unsanitary conditions - consequently there are some quite graphic and disturbing scenes as well as coarse language in this film.Essentially they are at first reluctantly assisted by a sewer system maintenance worker and part time thief/burglar who stumbles across them while going about his routine work, but as time goes by the worker begins to care more for the people than for the money they provide in exchange for much needed food and sustenance.Nominated for an Academy Award in Foreign Film categories this is a well made directed and acted film.

This film is in Polish with sub-titles in English. The film is very well acted throughout and portrays the survival of a group of Jews in Lvov (Poland) in the sewers under the city. The group were assisted by a Sewer Inspector who went from someone wishing to extort unfortunate people to their saviour risking his own life and his family's. Very thought provoking and a true demonstration of survival in the most extreme of circumstances. If you can get over the sub-titles a must see film.