The Holocaust has provided compelling, thought-provoking fodder for movies ever since "The Diary of Anne Frank" opened the door in the 1950s, making a previously thought-to-be-taboo subject acceptible for motion-picture drama.
The "Anne Frank" movie was released in 1959, after the book had become a best-seller and the play had become a Broadway smash. And since then, there have been myriad films on the subject — both true and fictional — including "Judgment at Nuremberg" (1961), "Sophie's Choice" (1985), the documentary "Shoah" (1985), "Schindler's List" (1993), and last year's Oscar-honored "The Pianist" (2002), and many others.
Television has also successfully tackled the subject with "Holocaust" (1978), "War and Remembrance" (1988), etc.
"Sophie's Choice," "Shoah," "The Pianist" and "War and Remembrance" have all been on DVD for awhile, but for some reason the others have been gathering dust on studio shelves. "Judgment at Nuremberg," Stanley Kramer's excellent film of the Nuremberg trials with an all-star cast (Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster, Marlene Dietrich, Judy Garland, etc.) and "Holocaust" (Meryl Streep, James Woods) don't seem to be close yet!
Now, "The Diary of Anne Frank," a documentary about Anne Frank and Steven Spielberg's incomparable "Schindler's List" have all come out on DVD within weeks of each other.
— "The Diary of Anne Frank" (Fox, 1959, PG, b/w, $14.98). The fine George Stevens theatrical film version (later remade twice for television) is in black and white (the director's choice) and shot in widescreen (not his choice, although it didn't hinder his capturing a sense of claustrophobia).
The true story is well-known — the Jewish Frank family left Germany when Hitler came into power, fleeing to the safety of Holland. But, eventually, Hitler's forces moved into the Netherlands, forcing the Franks to go into hiding.
The family of four took up residence — along with another family of three and an older gentleman — in an attic, where they managed to survive for two years before being discovered. Meanwhile, young Anne kept a diary that chronicled their good and bad times together, and when her father had it published after the war, the book put a face to the Holocaust, humanizing the horror and allowing people to come to terms with it.
Millie Perkins, in the title role, is often cited as the film's weak link, her performance is usually criticized as superficial. And looking at the film today, it seems a valid criticism . . . up to a point. Though Perkins' performance is not as strong as another youngster might have been, her cheery idealism seems appropriate. And, in truth, Richard Beymer, as her romantic interest, isn't any better.
Still, the film as a whole doesn't really suffer.
And the rest of the cast is unquestionably superb, especially Joseph Schildkraut as Anne's father (he and two other cast members — Gusti Huber and Lou Jacobi — were also in the Broadway production).
Among the bonus features is a fine documentary from the A&E Channel, narrated by Burt Reynolds, that compares the true story with the movie, along with vintage materials about the film.
Extras: Widescreen, audio commentary, making-of featurette, vintage newsreel, vintage press conference, screen test, photo gallery, etc.
—"Anne Frank Remembered" (Sony Classics, 1995, PG, color and b/w, $24.96). If you want the real lowdown on the Anne Frank story, it's hard to do better than Jon Blair's Oscar-winning documentary.
Young Anne is revealed to have been a complex human being — just like all of us — and the film doesn't shy away from those who occasionally remember her in less-than-flattering terms.
Kenneth Branagh narrates; Glenn Close reads from the diary. (Blair also shows up as one of the interviewees on the "Diary of Anne Frank" disc.)
Extras: Widescreen (though the box says "Full Frame"), trailers, etc.
— "Schindler's List" (Universal, 1993; R for violence, sex, nudity, language; $26.98). Steven Spielberg's Oscar-winning masterpiece holds up a decade later as an amazing film.
The story is of Oskar Schindler (superbly played by Liam Neeson), a flawed entrepreneur intent on exploiting Jewish workers for his own profit, but who eventually saved some 1,100 of them by fighting to keep them in his factory when Jews were being rounded up for the death camps.
Also excellent are Ben Kingsley as the accountant who is the keeper of the title list and Ralph Fiennes, chilling and horrifying as a ruthless Nazi commandant.
Spielberg never does audio commentaries on his DVD releases, and the bonus features here are rather limited. But there is a nice 77-minute documentary, "Voices From the List," with testimonies from various participants in Spielberg's Shoah Foundation (discussed further in the interview story on this page).
The double-sided disc includes most of the movie on Side A and the rest on Side B, along with supplemental materials. It's nicely packaged to resemble a small book. (Also available in a $79.98 "Collector's Edition," with the widescreen version, a photo book, the soundtrack CD, a senitype and a plexiglass case.)
Extras: Separate widescreen and full-frame editions, two featurettes, text filmmaker/cast bios, text Schindler biography, etc.
E-mail: hicks@desnews.com