Review of The Counterfeiters (2007) by Julia W — 04 Oct 2009

A review by Alberto Ehrler.

One of the most overused topics in modern-day cinema is World War II, and we never tire of watching films regarding the Holocaust because it helps us understand more our violent past, what we can learn from this experiences and especially because WWII was such a global incident, that every single person had a different experience regarding the global situation during those times. Many people knew, for example, that there were concentration camps in Germany where finantial experts, sketch artists and print-house handymen, all of them Jewish prisoners, worked as counterfeiters for the Third Reich, forging money that would help the Nazis support their finantial war...but few knew the actual story behind this fact. Stefan Ruzowitzky's "Die Falscher" is yet another fresh and broad look at a true story from WWII, about a group of Jewish men who worked in one such forging agency disguised as a concentration camp.

The film follows Salomon Sorowicz (Karl Markovics), a man of few words but with a strong and resolute personality, who's famous throughout Germany for his infallible forging of passports and money. He is arrested by Herzog (Devid Striesow) and, since he's a Jew, he's sent to a concentration camp. Due to his talent for sketching and forging, he's relocated to another concentration camp, where he discovers that the officer who arrested him, Herzog, has been promoted and now runs the supervision of this camp. Herzog admires Salomon, and puts him to supervise a small group of artists and financial experts who are trying to forge the British pound in exchange for a better treatment than the rest of the prisoners. What follows is a profound and poignant view at the lives these remarkable prisoners live, and how their struggle for survival conflicts with their morals (because they are being treated slightly better and their lives are being spared, but at the cost of helping the Nazis win the war). And when it seems like Germany might just be close to loosing the war, and the Nazis are in terrible need of money to support it, these cellmates quietly organize what is now famously known as the "Bernhard Operation", in which they delayed their production of forged money ergo aiding to Germany's eventual loss in WWII.

The film is historically accurate, but more than being a historical film, it is a film that delves into human angst and the nature of grief, honour and camaraderie. These men, these counterfeiters, have all lost someone, are all grieving, and are trying to survive; they have comfortable beds and decent food, but little by little they're losing their dignity. And the truth that they're living decently while the rest of their Jewish friends are perishing in other concentration camps weigh on their souls. The film is excellently acted, and each characters adds to the nature of human personality and it immerses us into their experiences to a point where you wince, you cry and you cheer alternately with every event that happens. It is also a very suspenseful story, and from the moment Salomon is sent to the concentration camp to the moment the end credits begin scrolling down the screen, you'll be holding on to the edge of your seat, feeling moved and horrified by the images and situations.

It is very well-made too. The screenplay seems like sent from heaven, the cinematography is perfect and the production as a whole has little or no flaws. This is a film that reflects and exposes the crude truths about WWII, and it also makes the viewer identify with the characters' personalities and what they're feeling. Simply said, it is one of the best historical dramas I've seen in a long time.

I really couldn't say anymore. It's a film that will be marked as one of the best experiences at the movies. See it! You won't be disappointed.

Rating: 4 stars out of 4!!