Schindler's List

1993.

#9 / #8

Winner of 7 Academy Awards.

SCHINDLER'S LIST tells the story of Oskar Schindler (Liam Neeson), a Nazi businessman who, over the course of the Holocaust, saves over a thousand Jews from certain death.

Eddie: There isn't much to say about SCHINDLER'S LIST except that it's a masterfully-crafted film. From start to finish, this movie breaks your heart. It never becomes melodramatic or preachy. Using a 1940s documentary style, Steven Spielberg and director of photography Janusz Kaminski reveal a tragic world only fifty years removed from the release of this film. Additionally, Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes turn in excellent performances as the near-embodiment of good and evil, respectively. The movie is an emotional roller coaster and, at times, difficult to stomach.

Sarah: One can only watch so many Holocaust films, because they are just too draining. But this film can't be missed. This film does a good job of showing multiple experiences and horrors. It never loses you in the numbers. We really see each character in the film as a person, instead of a mass of casualties. Spielberg makes sure of that.

The scene where Schindler looks over all his belongings and laments the lives he could have saved with the money he wasted is overwhelming. SCHINDLER'S LIST is a movie you won't see over and over, but you don't need to. It has so much impact.

Why You Should See It: The girl in the red coat.