Blu-ray Review: Dank Drama ‘In Darkness’ Tells Familiar Tale Beautifully Well

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CHICAGO – There were countless foreign films in 2011 more deserving of an Oscar nod than Agnieszka Holland’s “In Darkness.” The film lacks the brutal edge, gut-wrenching tension and memorable characterizations that distinguished so many similar Holocaust-era dramas. Yet the lukewarm “been there, done that” reaction of many American critics has left me rather mystified.

This isn’t a great film, per se, but it is still a harrowing and compelling portrait of resilience in the face of evil. Best known for her fact-based exploration of Hitler youth, “Europa, Europa,” Holland is skilled at creating the sort of vividly atmospheric environment that seeps into a viewer’s bones. One of my favorite films as a child was Holland’s sublime 1993 adaptation of “The Secret Garden,” which viewed the gothic interiors and lush mazes through the eyes of bewitched children.

HollywoodChicago.com Blu-ray Rating: 3.5/5.0
Blu-ray Rating: 3.5/5.0

With “In Darkness,” Holland burrows beneath the chaotic streets of a Polish city, where the squeals of rats echo in the stench-filled air. This dank underworld (reminiscent of Andrzej Wajda’s “Kanal”) is the hiding place of Jewish refugees begrudgingly led by an opportunistic thief, Leopold Socha (Robert Wieckiewicz), to escape certain death at the hands of Nazis. The script by David F. Shamoon is based on Robert Marshall’s book, “In the Sewers of Lvov,” which memorably recounted the astonishing real-life tale of survival. Over a 14-month period, the refugees somehow managed to live below ground, while Socha experienced a change of heart not unlike the one had by Oskar Schindler. Wieckiewicz’s performance is the glue that holds the film together, and he’s especially touching in the film’s final act, as he abandons his daughter’s baptism during a rainstorm in order to save the refugees from drowning.

In Darkness was released on Blu-ray and DVD on June 12, 2012.
In Darkness was released on Blu-ray and DVD on June 12, 2012.
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

At 143 minutes, the film contains a few extraneous subplots that could’ve easily been trimmed, such as the melodramatic complications that arise out of infidelity. Many members of the ensemble remain underdeveloped, yet a few manage to register as three-dimensional beings. Agnieszka Grochowska is deeply moving as a grieving woman whose younger sister fled the watery grave of the sewer only to be thrown into a concentration camp. Though Holland loosens her grip on the viewers by repeatedly cutting to events above ground, the outside world is every bit as constrained and foreboding as the sewers themselves. When a young refugee receives his first fresh breath of air in ages, we understand his nervousness as he asks to “go back inside.”

From the early shot of nude victims running through a forest like petrified ghosts, to the dizzying sequence where a mother, Paulina Chiger (Maria Schrader), flees to retrieve her daughter, Krystyna (Milla Bankowicz), as bodies begin falling from the rooftops, Holland proves her mastery of choreography and composition. Though it isn’t until the second act when the narrative starts to build some considerable momentum, “In Darkness” is a starkly beautiful tale about the price of human compassion and the glory found in selflessness. As Wieckiewicz’s heart awakens to the needs of the men and women at his command, he transforms from a thug into a real man. It’s a familiar tale, but one well worth telling again.

“In Darkness” is presented in impeccable 1080p High Definition (with a 1.85:1 aspect ratio) that relieves the dimly lit imagery of any incoherent murkiness. Critic Anne Thompson moderates a half-hour discussion with Holland, who reflects on various production difficulties, such as tensions between German and Polish crew members, money shortages, multiple languages and the challenge of shooting darkened interiors with a RED camera. It was her goal to avoid the cathedral-like beauty of the “Third Man” sewers, opting instead for a claustrophobic realism. In another excellent featurette, Holland conducts a conversation with the real-life Krystyna Chiger, who wrote a 2008 memoir based on her experiences entitled, “The Girl in the Green Sweater.” Though Chiger wasn’t involved in the film’s production (Holland initially thought that there were no remaining survivors), she attests to the film’s startling realism. The director stresses that it’s crucial to continue telling these stories, and not view the Holocaust merely as something that happened in the past, since there are similar atrocities occurring around the world at this very moment. It’s statements like these that make critical complaints of “familiarity” seem all the more trivial.

‘In Darkness’ is released by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment and stars Robert Wieckiewicz, Benno Fürmann, Agnieszka Grochowska, Maria Schrader, Herbert Knaup, Marcin Bosak, Krzysztof Skonieczny, Milla Bankowicz, Oliwer Stanczak and Kinga Preis. It was written by David F. Shamoon and directed by Agnieszka Holland. It was released on June 12, 2012. It is rated R.

HollywoodChicago.com staff writer Matt Fagerholm

By MATT FAGERHOLM
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
matt@hollywoodchicago.com

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