Movie Review: The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

I've never read the book, but the film version of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is so magnificent, I think I might just find a copy and start reading.

A touching and disturbing film all at once, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas tells the story of an eight year old German boy, Bruno, and his life with a Nazi officer father, his mother and his twelve year old sister and their placement close to a Nazi concentration camp. Bruno, curious about the "farmers" who live there, decides to venture out, against his parent's wishes, and visit the camp. As he soon learns, those "farmers" are actually Jewish prisoners who are literally being worked to death. During his visits to the camp, he meets a Jewish boy, also eight years old, who sits and chats with him across the fence. They become good friends, and after a series of politically charged events at home, Bruno decides to dig under the fence and meet the young Jewish boy on the other side. Once in the camp, they begin to search for the boy's father, only to end up meeting a terrible fate of which I will not mention. It would ruin an emotionally charged ending. Believe me, though, it is amazing.

The acting is spectacular. Asa Butterfield, who played Bruno, was especially fantastic. He is simply one of the best child actors I have seen in a while. One complaint I have, however, is that although the film is set in WWII Germany, every person has a British accent. Why?! It seems that so many movies nowadays use British accents in place of the appropriate European accent. It doesn't hurt the film too much, but it would have been nice to hear some sort of German somewhere in the movie.

I am absolutely pleased with The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. This film needs to be seen by everyone. It's themes of racism, family, and truth are truly universal. I am going to read the book now, and I will report back on just how accurate the movie was to it's roots. This is a must watch. Tell your family and tell your friends about the greatness that is The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.