Udhav's Ode!!

I had a weird feeling about this film the day I watched it, I did watch the film 2 years ago and somehow never ever thought of revisiting it again, until yesterday. Until yesterday, it didn't occur to me that it was indeed a masterfully made film until 10. PM , 15/04/09.

Before talking about the film, I want to say a few words.

"Breath takingly brilliant and oozing splendor in every Scene".

This film has been an aberration of sorts from Spielberg, who has quite often been seduced by the whim's and fancies of the Hollywood's Big league. Schindler's list is a deviation from his ever present boisterous human chasing beasts and how group of men finally escape the repugnant animals to safety, there by upholding the human race of perseverance and all that Bull shit. To be frank and square, he gets on my nerves, why the hell can't he get a divorce from his first wife(Science fiction and animal chasing humans).

Schindler's list is all about the list Schindler prepares , in the movie, what is that list all about and how and from whom does he gets it done is told in such a poetic way forms the crux of the film.Schindler later goes on to save the lives of Jews who work in his factory, not only that, he makes a huge list of names of Jews and buys them, literally from Kommandant , there by saving the lives of 1,100 Jews.

I am just itching to write about various scenes where in I could just feel my legs go numb.

One of the things which strike's me the most was way the it was shot, it was meant to be a take on history and rightly so, it was shot in black and white. The pernicious honesty was the telling point of the narration, where in every detail of the horror's of the holocaust was accounted for, and how Schindler realized the demons of the Nazi party and got the humane thought of saving Jews. The Schindler's character has been written and etched out so well, that Liam Neesan was simply Brilliant!!!. I would have to take my hat off to him.

Steven Spielberg is the prodigal son of Hollywood, for him to come up with a film with such precision and a film with such a primp screenplay is some thing which needs to be appreciated.

The film as such deals with demons of holocaust,so....the fear and blood stains are ubiquitous through out the film,the opening itself gives fair share of idea of who Oskar Schindler is all about. This sequence gives detailed gist of how he goes about bribing the Nazi bigwigs to help him set up a enamel factory, for almost, throughout the first hour,Oskar behaves as a despotic Capitalist with vested interests, and of course the war and the inflow of Shipment, the prisoner's THEY mean, help him get the worker's for his factory for a very meager sum by just bribing the big dogs of the NAZI Germany. In fact the scene preceding the one which I was talking about, shows him putting on his silk coat, wearing his cuffs and Tie, and taking bunch of notes to the party. This simple narrative tells us volumes about the stature and nature of Oskar Schindler.

Another scene which I am Curious to talk about is "cleaning the Ghetto" sequence. Jews would have been housed in an incubus small area, and they would be FORCED to shift to another place, which of course is other wise known as concentration camps. Jews would just be HERDED through on to the streets and literally washed out, every nook and corner would be searched and anyone who even thinks of hiding would be Shot.

Of course, some try to hide in the houses built in the most eff able fashion for STORING the Jews, quite literally. The soldiers begin the combing operations to search for people who are hiding and they mercilessly kill or Exterminate them, one of the most gut wrenching scene I have seen. Spielberg's narrative needs a special mention here, especially in bringing out the psyche of the kid, a kid jumps into a small drainage of sorts, where they would be few other kids who would be hiding, and those kids would say to him that it is "their" place and he cannot use it to hide. Such beautiful melancholy could be seen in the way that sequence was conceived.

Another instance is where , Oskar Schindler talks to the maid of Herr Kommandant, the conversation between the 2 is straight out of this, they don't talk strenuous English nor do they speak with a complex tone, which you usually find in most of the period films, She says something like " There are no set of rules which you will feel safe if you can abide by it" and she goes on to say, "Herr Kommandant hits me a lot", He hits me more when I ask him Why he hits me, I just can't help but marvel the way in which the emotions of Jews are brought out, there is nothing that the Jews can do. They cannot even hope for a better tomorrow. Coming back to Ghetto scene, surprisingly there is a small girl shown in a Pink color dress, who later on in the final phases of the movie is shown as being dead, apparently that girl would have escaped the ghetto cleansing. No Jew could have escaped once they are into a concentration camp, such was the fallible nature of the kommandants and soldiers involved in these camps. The only motto was to exterminate Jews and build fear among them. The other scene which really holds my attention right now, is the arbit firing of workers from the balcony by the "herr kommandant", he just picks up a sniper and starts shooting the workers working in the field.

So, much attention to detail is given, that I actually wanted to cross check it in Google, for example, the gas chamber at Auschwitz , had been imbibed to the last drop. In fact, the very thought of the gas chambers sends a chill down my spine. Quite on the contrary, there is a scene where a group of ladies would be discussing about how it has been "rumored" that Jews are being killed in a gas chamber. Incidentally when the same people are put through the same rigors of getting their hair cut and getting naked, and sent into the Gas chamber and women just clinging on to each other was just too intense, Spielberg gets 100/10 for this scene alone, for the manner in which he makes me to actually experience the feel of it, women get so anxious and tensed and the showers open inside the gas chambers and what happens next is a suspense, I don't want to bell the cat.

Another place where Spielberg hits me for a Six is the scene where the Rabbi is taken out by 3 guards and they try to shoot him, fortunately the pin in the gun fails to work properly , infact the guard tries to shoot him almost 5-6 times, that moment is captured with masterful perfection and impeccable and true emotions, a very contrasting ones too. Rabbi feels helpless and he is almost dead before being Shot and the guards actually feel, Rabbi is a worthless man, its actually worth to "Just" shoot him and Kill him.

Simply magnificent.

Lastly, the most touching scene of the film was the Schindler speech to the survivor's, where he goes on to declare that they are free from midnight today and that they should forgive him. He even remarks to his guards to either Kill the Jews as per the orders or leave the place as honorable men. The climax succeeding the speech was even more touching....

Schindler simply breaks down saying that he could have saved lot more people, and Jewish women come closer and hugs him. The accountant who takes care of his factories affair's actually present's him with a ring made from his golden teeth as he tries to flee. The workers reciprocate the gratitude by signing a letter in favor of Schindler if in any case he is captured. Its such a pious film with so much detail's stuffed in, surprisingly, it doesn't simply become another UNTERDANG, but it captures the horror's of holocaust and the climax just hits it on the head as to how grateful his "Descendants" are for him.

Watch it for the experience !!!