'Long Way Home' deftly handles Holocaust horrors

Thursday, December 10, 1998

FILM: Stark documentary accurately shows plight, hope of European Jews

By Rebecca Cohen

Daily Bruin Contributor

Skeletal and emaciated, they can hardly carry their own body weight. As victims of WWII, the prisoners of the concentration camps are unrecognizable. With haunted eyes and sunken cheeks, they look almost ghost-like.

In one particularly arresting scene from the Academy Award-winning documentary "The Long Way Home," the Nazi soldiers come to visit one of the camps. The camp's prisoners are relieved to see them, thinking maybe they have brought food or other much needed amenities.

The prisoners crowd the barbed-wire fences that tower over them, their eyes pleading for help, for mercy.

As they come upon the camp's prisoners, the soldiers' stoic, coldly proud expressions turn to disgust and horror. One by one they begin to double over, vomiting uncontrollably. The sight of the concentration camp victims has made them physically ill.

As they realize it is their own appearance that has made the soldiers sick, the prisoners back away from the fence, stunned. Until this moment they had not truly realized the transformation they had been through.

When the soldier's leave, they leave more than just the stench of vomit behind them. Having seen themselves through the eyes of the soldiers, the prisoners begin to look at each other with the same panic and disbelief. They cannot believe what has become of them.

Beautifully shot in black and white, "The Long Way Home's" cinematography artfully parallels the loss and emptiness the prisoners must have felt - the color having been drained from their lives.

The Holocaust is a very hard subject for many people to talk about. It is a part of our history that we almost wish we could forget because of the pain the memories of it continue to cause.

While some people insist that the Holocaust never happened, others are tired of hearing about it. But the indisputable fact is the Holocaust wiped 6 million Jews off the face of the earth. That's 6 million people who, like you and me, had families whom they loved and who loved them. They had jobs they were passionate about, dreams to be fulfilled and families to raise.

Maybe one of these people was destined to be the next Albert Einstein or Marilyn Monroe. Maybe their grandchild would have discovered a cure for AIDS. The sad fact is, no one will ever know.

The truth can be painful and disillusioning. We habitually try to gloss over it, or, as is the case with most movies, "Hollywoodize" it. The subject of the Holocaust has been portrayed in many movies, most notably "Schindler's List." And while "Schindler's List" was an extremely well-written, sensitive film, it still contained many Hollywood undertones.

A more accurate representation of the Holocaust and its far-reaching impact can be found in "The Long Way Home." Produced by Rabbi Marvin Hier and Richard Trank and directed by Mark Jonathan Harris, "The Long Way Home" presents the history of European Jews after the destruction caused by WWII and prior to the founding of the state of Israel.

It narrates the story of the horrific plight of the unfortunate individuals who found themselves trapped amid the brutality of the war. Separated from loved ones and forced into concentration camps, these victims of the war were tortured and starved. Forced into slave labor and given only bread and water to eat, these victims grew weak and hopeless.

Although some survivors were finally freed, they were quickly herded into new refugee camps. At the same time, Jewish settlers in Palestine tried to aid their friends and loved ones in spite of British immigration laws.

The images in the documentary are terribly disturbing. The film's overall message, however, is one of hope and perseverance. Also, the soothing sound of Morgan Freeman's narration serves to calm the nerves and allows the film's points and historical facts to be clearly heard.

With such a powerful subject to cover, "The Long Way Home" asks its viewers to taste the bitterness of reality. And while this isn't an easy thing to do, the knowledge one gains is irreplaceable.

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