Craig plays Tuvia Bielski, a farmer who along with his more disreputable brother Zus (Liev Schreiber) regrouped in the forest when the Nazis and police collaborators starting killing Jews and sending others to concentration camps.
Zus is described in the movie as a "bandit," an important bit of information because it explains why he has guns. When their families are murdered, the Bielskis have not only the mettle to fight back but the metal - the means to kill Nazis, and the means to collect more weapons.
There is much current debate about why this story of Jewish resistance hasn't been filmed until now, but one reason, possibly, is that it's politically incorrect. The movie is revenge-minded and implicitly pro-gun. The link between freedom, self-defense and firearms couldn't be more plain: "Defiance" is sure to be Ted Nugent's favorite Holocaust movie.
Which is also why you expect it to be more crackling than it is, especially with leading man Craig as its dashing hero.
Craig tries, but the movie is hampered, in a weird way, by Zwick's determination to stick closely to facts and details. He filmed on location, during the same type of harsh winters the Bielskis endured (the cold-and-flu season is, like, 11 months).
The Bielskis gave shelter to refugees, recruiting some as fighters and protecting women, the elderly and children. They formed a makeshift society deep in the woods, beyond the reach (for the most part) of Nazi patrols.
In "Defiance," this causes a split between the brothers. Zus believes sheltering women and weaker men (eventually more than 1,000) makes them easy targets; Tuvia sees a moral duty to take all comers.
Zus leaves to fight full time with Russian partisans (anti-Semites, but glad of the help), while Tuvia is left to manage his floating community.
Zwick is preoccupied by the latter group and seems endlessly interested in its sociological details (and physical hardships).
As a director, you are sometimes damned if you do, damned if you don't. Bryan Singer used a shorthand version of history to convert "Valkyrie" into a slick thriller. Zwick wants something more substantial and comprehensive, but his movie plods along, weighted down by his penchant for earnest dialogue and exposition.
You can forgive him for favoring truth over narrative drive, but he managed to combine both in "Blood Diamond." *
Produced by Edward Zw*ck and P*eter Jan Brugge, d*rected by Zw*ck, wr*tten by Zw*ck and Clay Frohman, mus*c by James Newton Howard, d*str*buted by Paramount Vantage.
