I caught this unknown film on Polish television last night and was blown away. The following day as I write this I'm still haunted about some of the scenes towards the end.
With an excellent blend of Polish and international actors and actresses, this tale of the loss of childhood innocence during WW2 is as powerful and memorable as Schindler's List or the Pianist, and is certainly not for young children.
While Osmont's performance is great, it is Liam Hess as the young Tola who steals the film, a true innocent who longs to understand what it was like to be Jesus, an amazing characterisation by such a young boy.
There are moments of lovely humour in the film as you'd expect watching the innocent/stupid/naive things kids do, but the last thirty minutes are quite shocking and emotionally draining.
Congratulations to writer/director Yurek Bogayevicz and all involved, for a powerful piece of filmmaking.
