One Life
British stockbroker Nicholas Winton visits Czechoslovakia in the 1930s and forms plans to assist in the rescue of Jewish children before the onset of World War II, in an operation that came to be known as the Kindertransport.
- Released:
- Runtime: 110 minutes
- Genre: Drama, History, War
- Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Helena Bonham Carter, Jonathan Pryce, Romola Garai, Lena Olin, Samantha Spiro, Adrian Rawlins, Marthe Keller, Ziggy Heath, Tom Glenister, Tim Steed, Samuel Finzi, Matilda Thorpe, Ffion Jolly, Alex Sharp, Johnny Flynn
- Director: James Hawes
Comments
- michvanbeek - 3 July 2024
Way to stulized and clean to impress
Director James Hawes comes up with this impressive work based on the true story of Nicolas Winton. Over the last ten years, Hawes has mainly directed episodes of series such as The Mist, Black Mirror and Snowpiercer. His last film dates back to 2013 and was also a TV film. With One Life, Hawes comes with a cinema film and that is his first. In the leading roles we see none other than Sir Anthony Hopkins, who of course needs no introduction, and Helena Bonham Carter. The younger generation may know Carter from her role as Bellatrix Lestrange from the Harry Potter films. In the past, she was nominated for an Oscar for her roles in the films The King's Speech (2011) and The Wings of the Dove (1998), which she unfortunately did not win. So there is no shortage of experience and quality in this film.
When Nicolas ends up in Czechoslovakia on business in 1938, he ends up with refugee families. When he sees the conditions in which the children live, he decides to do everything he can to offer the children a safe home in England, but everything seems more difficult than he expected. The first 45 minutes of the film shows in a fairly slow manner how Nicolas manages to achieve this with his mother. Of course, haste is required on the eve of the Second World War. Interwoven throughout this story is the story in which the traumatized Nicolas has become an old man who cannot let go of the past. When, 50 years later, he wants to come out with stories about the refugees, including all the material he has in his possession in terms of photos and papers, most people do not seem to be interested in this and the interest in Nicolas himself seems greater than in the real stories about the refugees.
When the Germans invade Czechoslovakia and replace the government in Prague, time really starts to run out and Nicolas must increase the groups he channels to England. The problem is that there is not enough donation money coming in and there are not enough foster parents available in England to take care of the children. Although the story is beautiful and the acting is strong from the entire cast, the decoration of the film is a bit too stylized. Everything seems to be neatly painted and spotless and even the clothes that are worn seem to have come straight from the dry cleaners. Now that's not so crazy for a banker, but refugee children in a relief camp with spotless clothes is a bit crazy of course. This is a part that is quite disturbing in the film and often means that certain emotions are removed from the scene. There really would have been a lot more to this if just a little more energy had been put into it. And then Germany invades Poland and total panic and chaos breaks out.
One Life tells the impressive story of Nicolas Winton, who managed to keep 669 children in Czechoslovakia out of the hands of the Germans. Unfortunately, the film's decoration is a bit too stylized and that is quite disturbing. But not only that, because although the story is interesting and the performances from the entire cast are very strong, the film is slow and boring at some points. When Nicolas wants to sell his collected scrapbook with all the information in his old age, there seems to be little interest in it. What is remarkable is that on the cover the film has an age limit of 16 years and older, while when you start the film a viewing guide for 12 years and older is issued. The latter seems more appropriate to me, because although the subject is intense, the film itself is told in a fairly mild manner. The film is definitely worth watching, because the story is special enough for it. A better script with a bit more momentum would have been desirable, but oh well. The point is made and achieved in the film. - er-03866 - 18 May 2024
Nicholas Winton is a hero!
One life by James Hawes 'One life' is a brilliant film for everyone directed by a British director James Hawes. It's a war film based on a true story. The film appeared in 2023. The real story happened in the beginning of 1939.
The plot of the story is absolutely thrilling because you realize that it was real. The main character's name was Nicholas Winton. In 1939, Winton visited Prague during a horrible occupation and witnessed how terrible the situation with Jewish children was. He organized an operation to evacuate children to the UK. With the help of incredible volunteers and donors Winton arranged eight trains to carry the children to their new homes. Despite numerous challenges Nicholas managed to save 669 children. Also this project highlights children's problems, showing their fear and hope as they left their families. One well-produced thing about the film is that they showed what happened to these people years later. Nicholas Winton came to a TV show and met some of the children he had save. The film concludes with this really heartwarming reunion.
In my opinion, this film is very thought-provoking because it helps you to dive into the past and feel yourself in the skin of the children and their parents. The moment when you realize that in spite of the fear and difference of nations people continued to help each other to fight for their lifes was amazing. The thing that I like the most were the vivid descriptions and convincing actors. They helped me to feel how life went through during the Second World War. Also this story inspires me to do good deeds.
To sum up, if you are a fan of films that combine true stories, drama, thought-provoking actions, sensitive scenes and inspiring plot, I would reccomend you to watch "One life".
