Schindler’s List

I feel I have to first state that I think this is a powerful film and one that should have been made given the ignorance of the majority of people regarding the Holocaust. However, I do not view Schindler’s List as a film that focuses primarily on the Holocaust and it is perhaps this reason that I do not agree with the many detractors of this film. I see the film focusing on the character of Oscar Schindler and his development as a human being. The movie is fascinating as it explores a human being that winds up doing great acts, yet a man that at least initially lacks any moral center. As we witness Itzhak Stern guide Schindler on his path to becoming a compassionate human being, the images of the Holocaust are moving, but they do come close to representing the Holocaust itself. The fact that none of the characters we come to know lose their lives, the overall positive feeling of the film (and one can perhaps fault Spielberg for making his film sometimes too beautiful for the subject matter), the need for him to find an escape for his persecuted characters, and his betrayal of his exploration of an imperfect main character (having Schindler break down and cry wishing he had spent more money) do give ammunition to his critics. The scene where the Jewish woman and children are placed into what we think are gas chambers, only to find (to the characters’ relief and ours) it is only a shower, is aggravating. Spielberg it seems can not go that far into the darkness and we perhaps subconsciously are relieved he has provided an escape. For millions of people however, there was no escape and providing one for a Hollywood production may ultimately sell more tickets, but fails to help us grasp the horror that ended so many lives.

However, if you acknowledge that no film or work of art can ever represent the Holocaust, then the moments and images Spielberg does capture are powerful and add to the main focus of the film, which is the character of Oscar Schindler. On that level, had Spielberg not chosen to have Schindler break down out of character at the end of the film, but instead left him the enigma he was (perhaps even suggesting he could have been doing this as he knew Germany was losing the war), the character of Oscar Schindler would have gone down as one of the most interesting in films. In the end however, Spielberg has given us a fascinating character portrayal and glimpses of some of the atrocities. Merely for this and the fact he helped bring awareness to the subject, he succeeded and must be commended.

I would also argue that even with the failing on the part of Spielberg to hold true to the character of Oscar Schindler due to his apparent constant need for melodrama in his characters and feel good endings to his movies, the character of Oscar Schindler that existed up until the last few moments of the film is so fascinating, that it still manages to rise to the level of brilliance. Few people could have even dared to make Schindler’s List into a movie and Spielberg’s masterpiece is flawed, but I can’t help but admire him for what he was able to accomplish.