Haven

This is the story of a woman of great courage and compassion. The acting was excellent. I, however, felt clubbed to death by every anti-Jewish cliche known. I lived in the mid-west during the time of this movie's setting and had several Jewish friends. I rarely ever saw the unkind responses shown in this movie. In fact the only times that I ever heard negative comments about Jews were in a few adults who were prejudiced about equally between all the groups different than their own. In this regard, the movie is little different than many "black" movies that go to extremes to show victimizing of their class.

I find that Haven is extremely engrossing, inspiring enough for me to invite a number of people to watch its four hour length and to wake up thinking about it months after seeing it for the first time. It is not mawkish. It is about a harsh reality and it is about history and it is also about telling us about society in the time of WWII. It might not be comfortable for some of us to accept the reality of rejection, of discrimination, of the Holocaust and of the genuine responsibility of governments of the world who looked away from Nazism and its genocidal

maniacs. The anti-American slant of at least one of the reviews smacks of a

parochial nationalism that hides the historical truth that Canada ALSO was

guilty of looking away from victims of the Holocaust. Had the U.S. president Roosevelt lifted one political finger things could have been a lot better for them. Hitler took advantage of the fact that no one would take Jews into their borders before and during the war to carry out his demoniacal plans and no one with

political power tried to stop it It nor did the Allies even bother to bomb the gas chambers nor the railroads going to the concentration camps. It took the

courage and moral fibre of the little man from Missouri, Harry S. Truman , and little people like Ruth Gruber to make their mark. This film makes this

abundantly clear. This might not be a popular position but I can assure the

readers, that in my experience, he and she are held in the highest regard and FDR is now considered a moral failure amongst survivors. The film points this out along with many allusions to the prejudice of the State Department against even these poor victims of the Holocaust. If facts and well acted theatre can interact then this film does it all.

The similarity of roles played by Liam Neeson in "Schindler's List" and Natasha Richardson in "Haven" is apparent (one hero, the other heroine) saving Jewish lives. "Haven" draws the viewer in by focusing on America's neglect for rescuing Jewish families from Hitler during WW2. This movie tells an equally powerful story of the lives of Jewish families that needed restoration during/after the holocaust. This movie reminds us what the word holocaust actually means, both for those lives taken and for those lives left behind. Well told story, with great supporting acting from Hal Holbrook, Anne Bancroft, etc.

I had the pleasure of meeting Ruth Gruber,little had I known at the time of what all this woman had accomplished,the lives she saved,the dangers she had put herself thru...I would have surly felt small as an ant had I known that day what all this great woman had done.I would have broken down,cried in her lap.thanked her for her courage.I enjoyed the movie,and now own and treasure the book signed by her.I am shocked at how some people will say the Holocaust never happened,they are truly out of touch with reality.The awful things that were done tears at my heart,I cry every time I watch a movie or documentary about it.It was awful and I think in our times now...many are afraid that this is where our own nation may be heading for.But that will never happen here.

i always knew that America carried anti-semitic views, but i never knew that it was very strong within our own government that Jewish refugees were not even allowed to marry. it's hard to say that this movie was syrupy or overdone considering it was based on a true story. funny how it worked it out well for Hollywood, it's a shame it wasn't taken to the big theaters and was just a TV movie. nonetheless, it was an excellent film that revealed the war at home, the fight for refugees, and America's own hidden agenda. everyone knows now that many nations knew about Hitler's plans and ignored it, but this movie shows how much more we hid. i hope that everyone gets to see this movie for not only was the plot great, but that acting was well done. all the actors contributed very well. it surprised me much that i never heard about refugee camps during WWII, not even in my history class.