Defiance (E. Zwick, 2008)

Defiance is a film that tells the story of the Bielski partisan, three Jewish brothers who during World War II, built a sanctuary in the Belrussian forest where they hid Jewish refugees from Nazi raids. The incredible thing about the Bielski brothers is that they aimed not to attack and harm Nazi's, but simply to save their fellow Jews from the horrors they were enduring. With a talented cast headlined by Daniel Craig (Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace), Liev Schreiber (Hamlet, the upcoming X-Men Origins: Wolverine) and Jamie Bell (Jumper, Billy Elliot), an Oscar winning director in Edward Zwick (Blood Diamond, The Last Samurai) and a powerful, true story, the film looked like a surefire hit on paper. However, Defiance was a cold reminder that movies are produced on celluloid, not papyrus.
The film was clearly set up to be an actors showcase, but quickly turns into a mess of melodramatic, annoying, amateurish imitation (I can squint, whine, and yell too Jamie Bell). Daniel Craig, who is given the meatiest role as Tuvia Bielski, the eldest brother and de facto leader of the camp, simply seemed to channel his James Bond in a situation far dire than any of the spies adventures. For most of the film, he relied on the Bond charm and good looks to comfort the other refugees, and during the few dramatic scenes, he leaves his Belrussian accent at the door and goes into rebellious, shoot 'em up Bond mode. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I highly doubt that Tuvia Bielski was flagrantly shooting Nazi officers in their own home, dodging bullets in the dead of the night, and maneuvering back to the forest camp without any problems. I also doubt that Bielski's accent would disappear whenever he raised his voice, something that quickly becomes a lasting nuisance throughout the film.
Jamie Bell plays the youngest brother, and is supposed to draw our sympathy, being the unfortunate soul forced into the devastation of war by the Axis of Evil. I feel for his character, Asael Bielski, and all those who were subject to horror during the Holocaust, but Bell's Asael came off as arrogant, self-righteous, and rather close-minded. Then, with roughly twenty minutes left in the film, Asael turns into this 'Superman' type; herding all the refugees to safety and managing to lead a group that two scenes ago, rebelled against him, while Tuvia sits pensively on a rock. It's truly one of the more ridiculous examples of character development I've ever seen, but more on the horrendous script later.
As for Schreiber, he delivers as Asa Bielski, the middle child and renegade of the group. His performance is steadfast and often provides the intensity and fear that would've existed in all the characters during their ordeal. Much to my dismay, he was cast in a very cliche role; the middle child gets upset by the older sibling's superiority, so he runs off and does the opposite of what the sibling stands for, only to come back in the end and save the sibling. I could've dealt with the cliches and the inaneness of it all if Schreiber had been there the entire time, dominating the screen and commanding attention. But we only see him for the first thirty and last thirty minutes of the film, leaving a good hour and fifteen minutes of acting hell in between. The supporting cast was downright annoying, with only one refugee performance worth watching. This was a two minute cameo from veteran character actor Mark Margolis (The Wrestler, The Fountain) as a Jewish Ghetto Elder hell bent on not joining the Bielski brigade. He outacts the thirty some-odd characters in his scene with ease, and made Craig look like Eli Manning in the company of the Eagle's defense.
However, I can't thrust all blame upon the actors for the one dimensional performances. Actors can only work with the script that they're given, and the creative vision of the director. Edward Zwick is a very accomplished director who usually turns in thought provoking, engaging work. However, his script is so fatuous, vapid, and cliche riddled, that I can't conceive a way that this project was greenlit, and furthermore, attracted the attention of Craig, Bell, Schreiber, composer James Newton Howard, cinematographer Eduardo Serra, and distributor Paramount Vantage. The dialogue is downright senseless, making the characters seem debilitated and helpless. For example, the Nazi soldiers are attacking the Bielski camp. Tuvia and Asael are warding off the advances of the Germans, but behind them, all we hear are complaints about the cold, about having to cross a river, and about the Germans. Zwick wants us to show solicitude toward his characters, but he makes them impossible to like, rendering the film's message pointless.
Another major problem with the script is its lack of direction. The film's focal point is the Bielski brothers, and what great heroes they are. However, the film doesn't choose whether it wants to be a film exploiting the deprivation of dehumanized people a la Schnidler's List, or a war film with hints about camaraderie a la Saving Private Ryan. Because of this, the film never hits its stride, leading to awkward cuts between battle and camp life, and lame subplots (such as a love story for each of the brothers) that throw the film further offcourse. As a veteran of Hollywood, Zwick should've chosen a tone for his film and then fit the story of the Bielski's into it, instead of taking a very interesting, undertold story, and trying to make a film around it. Zwick also fails to give us any background of the Bielski's, how they knew about the forest, or specific events during their ordeal. This was extremely disappointing to a viewer like myself, who wanted to not only be entertained, but to be informed about the Bielski struggle. The courage of the Bielski brigade and its followers deserved a better product than what I had the displeasure of viewing.
Of course, it wasn't all bad. Defiance, shot in Lithuania, is a marvel to look at. Serra makes excellent use of natural lighting, making us feel like we are in the woods, watching these exiles attempt to survive. James Newton Howard provides us with a compelling score that eases the pain evoked by the films dialogue. And of course, Craig gets one vigilante scene, which although feels like a deleted scene from Casino Royale, was the definition of riveting cinema.
I'm not going to tell you to avoid Defiance at all costs. The film does bring an important historical event to life, one which I personally had no knowledge of before learning about the film. However, if you're looking for anything more than light hearted entertainment, save this one for DVD.