Tag: Norman Lebrecht


Song of Names

November 21st, 2019 — 5:52am

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The Song of Names – sp

The title of this movie refers to an imaginary song that consists of the names of hundreds of thousands of Jews killed at the Treblinka Nazi Extermination Camp in Poland during World War II. The screenplay by Jeffrey Caine is based on a novel by Norman Lebrecht, introduces us to a young boy, Dovidl, who happens to be a violin prodigy and is being left at the home of a British family during the early days of the turmoil in Europe in the 1940s. The rest of the boy’s family is returning to Poland not realizing the fate that awaits them there. The story progresses through flashbacks of different phases in the life of Dovidl, who is played by Luke Doyle (ages 9 to 13), Jonah Hauer-King (ages 17 to 23), and Tim Roth as a middle aged man. Martin, the young boy who is in the British family becomes more or less Dovidl’s brother and interacts with him during the various stages of their lives. Martin is played by Misha Handley (ages 9-13), Gerran Howell (ages 17 through 21) and by Clive Owen as a middle aged man.

The flashbacks may at first be a little confusing as they occur but the emotional theme of the story will be quite clear. It is expressed not only in the cold facts of history, but through the beautiful emotional violin music, which reflects the storyline of everlasting grief and the mourning, which go with it.Francois Girard, 2019

The producers who put together this international production along with director, Francois Girard were apparently the first fictional movie team granted permission to film inside the Treblinka Memorial. Not only is the music haunting and unforgettable, but so is this creative story (2019).

Comment » | 3 Stars, Drama

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