Zwick does it again with 'Defiance'

Director: Edward Zwick

Cast: Daniel Craig, Jamie Bell, Live Schreiber, George McKay

Cert: 15

Edward Zwick is known – and lauded – for his ability to tell a good story on the grand scale (he directed the excellent American Civil War epic, 'Glory') and he is at his best in this adaptation of a true story.

Craig, Schrieber and Bell play the Jewish Bielski brothers who in Belorussia in the early 1940s joined a partisan group to fight the invading Germans. The group founded a village community and their courage, along with that of their companions, saved more than 1,000 Jewish lives.

It is an uplifting WW2 story in which Zwick allows the humanity to break through the horror and the slaughter. While it is a war film it does not confine itself to the fighting but layers the development of the plot with feelings and emotion.

And in the three major players – particularly Craig, who can when given the opportunity rise well above the comic-book antics of Bond – there is a collective brilliance of performance.

Star Rating: 4/5