Review of Inside Hana's Suitcase (2009) by Walter M — 19 Sep 2013
Imagine the best show and tell ever and you will have "Inside Hana's Suitcase" which starts when Fumiko Ishioka, an elementary school teacher in Japan, is loaned some artifacts from the Holocaust Museum. One of them is a suitcase once belonging to Hana Brady who was 11 when she was sent to a concentration camp. The curiosity of Fumiko's students leads her on a quest that will eventually bring her to the Czech Republic and Hana's surviving brother, George.
As heartfelt as this documentary is, I think I might not exactly be the right audience for it, as it seems aimed mostly to children, who mostly narrate, in order to teach them about tolerance and the Holocaust, bringing it to a level they can understand without scarring them for life. Regardless of the audience, the dramatizations work better in recreating life in the concentration camps than before the war. Now, if only the documentary had been structured better, like maybe pulling a "Searching for Sugar Man" in following Fumiko first, and letting the suspense build, before filling in the rest of the story.
This review of Inside Hana's Suitcase (2009) was written by Walter M on 19 Sep 2013.
Inside Hana's Suitcase has generally received very positive reviews.
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