Review of Schindler's List (1993) by Cameron J — 06 Jan 2013

Oh yeah, Steven Spielberg directs this wartime epic starring Liam Neeson as a hero who saves thousands from the clutches of the guy who played Lord Voldemort, so you know that things are going to get action-packed, or at least until you see that this film is on the shortlist of AFI's "100 Years: 100 Movies", even though it's not, like, 103 years old, and realize that this film can't possibly be too silly. So yeah, if you people want a real Jewish revenge epic, Steven Spielberg did go ahead and take the liberty of going on to make "Munich", which is shorter, with more explosion and cinematography that isn't primarily in black-and-white, yet is, as sweet irony would have it, still slower than this film, probably because even Spielberg knew that he was going to have to keep things lively if he was going to have the guts to make a three-hour, black-and-white drama without a whole lot going on outside of a plot about some businessman saving people by hiring them as factory workers. Well, in all fairness, this film stars Liam Neeson, a talented, exceptionally charismatic and all around awesome dude, whereas "Munich" starred Eric Bana, and that right there is enough said when you're talking about reasons why "Munich" is duller than this film. I joke, but I still thought "Munich" was pretty good, being all smart and dramatic and whatnot, even with Eric Bana, so you want my recommendation if you're looking a not so heavy film about some German going around and kicking some mean butt, then I suggest that you pick up an Arnold Schwarzenegger film, and maybe some taste along the way, if you can't find me a globe that is, because I just realized that I just called Schwarzenegger German, even though he's Austrian. Well, at least that mistake isn't as embarassing the one ostensibly made by the people who decide who gets to talk about the Holocaust when they gave permission to write about a Holocaust book as significant as the one this film is based upon, not to an Austrian, but to Thomas Keneally, an Austr[u]al[/u]ian, because, really, what does Keneally know about the Holocaust, what with his being of a Roman Catholic culture that is barely talked about as a participant in WWII? Well, apparently he knows enough to make what I can imagine is a darn good book, seeing as how it makes for a darn good film, which, to be fair, might be as good as it is because it's being directed by a Jew. At least Spielberg is sticking with his own race with this drama, which would explain the extra high inspiration in this film, because as good as "The Color Purple" is, it's not quite this effort, and yet, with that said, even I, someone who was going into this film hoping to "not" find something as action-packed as later Liam Neeson films, didn't quite get what I was looking for.

An over three-hour ensemble character piece, this film has plenty of time to flesh things out and, as you would imagine, uses its time for exposition well, building up meat and weight to this story's depth throughout its hefty - nay - sprawling length, and yet, with that said, immediate development stands to have a bit more punch, failing to give you an out-of-the-gate full grip on things that may find plenty of flesh-out at the body, but trip up enough early on to throw off momentum that still finds itself a bit shaken by the time we reach the film's more expository body. Of course, it might not so much be the aftershock of immediate development lapses that shake the momentum of the film's body, as much as it's certain storytelling hiccups that stick around after the development segment, because as well-told as this film is, the final product is held back a bit by more than a few undeniable issues in storytelling, such as focal unevenness, as the film tackles too many characters and subplots to completely keep up with in an organic fashion, thus creating a kind of convolution that dilutes investment a bit in most every subplot, while emphasizing the gratuitiousness of certain subplots. Each plot area of this film is worthy in theme and compelling in concept, but in execution, more than a few story elements outstay their welcome and help the film in achieving its overlong length, though not as much as the even more awkward incorporation of too much material within each subplot, both gratuitious and integral, all of which, while engaging, are hardly tight, going padded with excess material that eventually slips into repetition. The film isn't so loose that it's three-hour runtime is punishing, yet much too much is bloated, with too much fat to trim that drives the film into circles and slows down the final product's momentum, which is not in least bit helped by slowness, not within story structure, but atmospheric pacing, because as entertaining as the film very often is, things get to be blandly quiet, if not all-out dry, blanding things up a touch and giving you enough time to meditate upon both the story's structural issues and the story's more natural shortcomings. This film's story boasts the opportunity for near-epic scope that is indeed delivered on more than a few occasions, yet this film isn't quite as sweeping as the exceedingly ambitious Steven Spielberg thinks it is at times, having minimalist areas that go disconcertingly bloated in scope, while certain key broader areas ironically find their full range uncaptured, thus creating a kind of structural unevenness that pounds at pacing until it is obscured, making most every compelling yet overblown moment of this lengthy film palpable, while tainting story progression with direction issues. There are points where this film achieves brilliance and fulfills what it should fulfill throughout its course, and lord knows that I wish I could join everyone else and his or her cat in saying that this film sustains such excellence on the whole, but I can't deny that this film is structurally faulty, flowing along with limited aim and pacing, and too much material, until the final product is rendered overlong and just short of its full potential. Still, through all of its shortcomings, this film perseveres, for although excellent moments are, as I said, limited, strength is ceaseless, being terribly high only so many times, but consistently high enough to reward thoroughly as a compelling drama, or at least a masterpiece for John Williams.

One of the most iconically influential and recognizable forces of the film scoring industry, John Williams is certainly a respectable talent, though I feel that he, as skilled as is, gets to be formulaic, with musical tastes that could be sharper, and yet, with that said, Williams is consistently strong, with certain exceptional efforts, such as his score work for this film, which doesn't use music a whole lot, but really delivers when it does, as Williams achieves what might very well be one of his absolute best scores, which breaks from Williams' formula and usual natural shortcomings to turn in dynamic and lively musicality, rich with classical soul and sobering depth that ranges from lovely to breathtaking, and compliments the film's own depth with remarkable artistry, matched by the film's visual artistry. An exceptional cinematographer, Janusz Kamiński is probably one of the best things to happen to Steven Spielberg in the last 20 years, and makes a debut as Spielberg's cinematographer that is nothing short of remarkable, cleverly flaunting the black-and-white color style as a stylish compliment to visual style, while bypassing the limitations of this style to deliver on lighting that backs up strikingly well-detailed image definition, when not taking advantage of the environment and fine camerawork to absorb certain visual elements stunningly, even without color. Visually and musically, the film accels, with striking artistry that aesthetically engages while complimenting this film's substance's value, of which, there is much, as you can find much worthiness, potential and intrigue within this story, whose shortcomings in execution is, to me, primarily the fault of Steven Spielberg's direction, as the great Steven Zaillian's script, while with its own flaws and excesses, is generally tight in structure, with meaty development and rich characterization, all of which goes complimented by pretty colorful dialogue. Zaillian's script is flawed, but deserves a better execution, as sure as the promising story behind the script deserves a better execution, which isn't to say that final directorial execution totally betrays the story's and script's value, because as flawed as the overambitious Steven Spielberg's uneven and often aimless storytelling is, Spielberg keeps you going with quite a bit of entertaining livliness for every slow spell, broken up by the aforementioned brilliant occasions, which go powered by Spielberg's inspired marriage of his often overlooked audaciously unapologetic attention to detail and his just as signature tenderness, near its most genuine, thus making for moving emotional resonance. Were this resonance much more prevalent, or at least compensated for with more lively and tight storytelling, the final product would have been about as upstanding as they say, yet as things stand, Spielberg crafts a compelling effort, further powered by compelling performances, as most everyone in this film has his or her own strength and charisma, with Ralph Fiennes standing out as a crushingly effective yet believable sadist with a convincing cover of charisma over a sickeningly brutal disregard for human life and lust for power. As for Liam Neeson as the titular hero, he's not given too much to do for most of the film, yet firmly establishes himself as Oskar Schindler with a pronounced charisma and presence that leaves Neeson to bond with his, which of course makes the layers to Neeson's performance all the more compelling, arriving fashionably late, but making the wait count by defining the depth of Schindler and leaving Neeson to further become the icon and, by extension, more engrossing as a lead who is never less than compelling. It's a strong performance by Neeson to help in carrying a strong film that could have been more, and easily would have been more if it wasn't so loose and flawed in its telling, yet is still with enough artistry, inspiration and competence to emphasize the worthy story's value and make the final product a rewarding one.

When it's all said and done, a reportedly and should-be excellent film finds its potential immediately shaken by early exposition issues, and altogether undercut by an convoluting excessiveness and unevenness in plot structuring, as well as much trimmable material that sparks repetition, worsens slow spells and emphasizes the story's natural limitations, further emphasized by Steven Spielberg's overambitious, unevenly scoped and near-aimlessly paceless storytelling, thus making for a bloated final product that could have and should have hit harder, even though it still hits pretty hard, with excellent score work and lovely cinematography to compliment the depth of a worthy story that is, in execution, generally well-written by Steven Zaillian, while Steven Spielberg keeps entertaining livliness going, until broken up by effective dramatic impact, backed up by many a compelling performance, - particularly those of Ralph Fiennes and leading man Liam Neeson - that give us a glimpse into what could have been and helps in making "Schindler's List" a still quite compelling and rewarding tribute to a unique hero of the horror that was the Holocaust.

3/5 - Good.