gregg r A very haunting movie. Pay attention to the last 30 minutes of this movie. Why this movie did'not win a Academy award is a shame. The best performance belong to young Mr. Hess as Tolo. He is amazing, very Oscar-worthy. It's not for the kids, but definitely a adult film. 10 stars for this epic movie. The movie was made in 2001, but still is a great movie in 2012. HJO performance was great, but the film still goes to Leon Hess. At eight years old, he was outstanding. I will never forget his last scene. Haunting and riveting at the same time. Whether you are a Catholic or a Jew or any religion, this is a terrific movie. The very next day, i purchased this movie and added to my very rare selection of movies. Simply mind-boggling.

modline It is amazing that this film did not receive a theatrical release - surely someone in Hollywood has their head up their ass. This movie could have been a major Oscar contender. It is a beautiful story, told to near perfection. Haley Joel Osment continues to prove he's one of the greatest child actors of all-time, and Liam Hess makes an amazing impression as Tolo. Both performances are Oscar worthy, as are the script, direction, cinematography, and picture.Without revealing too much of the film focuses on the story of a young boy torn from his parents and Jewish upbringing and forced into a Catholic peasant community during the War. The horrors of the War are shown full, and the children of the community become heavily involved with the church as a means to escape the horrors, especially the impressionable, younger Tolo.This is definitely one of the best movies to ever deal with the horrors of World War II, and certainly the best since "Schindler's List."

mz12 I consider this film to be the best one with Haley J. Osment. I must admit that first I watched it only because HJO was starring in it (and because the film was shot in my country, ie Poland). Not only does Haley play wonderfully, but also the film itself is very good, mixing the times of WWII with the fragile construction of children's psyche. The film was made in Poland, so it was very nice to see Haley playing in Polish landscapes. I must say I am very surprised that the film was not yet released in the US. In Poland it was shown in cinemas in 2001. In January 2003 the film was released on DVD. A few weeks ago (November 2003) the movie was on TV so it had really wide audience. I don't understand why such a good movie was not released in the US !! If you want, you can write to me: (make sure it's o2, and not 02).

Guylian I saw this film on Australian cable tv. It's a marvellous film with fantastic performances, especially from the children. If it was actually in Polish with subtitles, I imagine it would have received a lot more notice - which is sad because apart from the casting of Willem Dafoe and Haley Joel Osment, everything else is European - but to remove them would be travesty, as their performances are flawless, and I have no trouble believing that both could have spoken in Polish for their roles if called for. As a decendant myself of WW2 era Polish catholics, the depiction of the German soldiers and their treatment of the villagers also rang true - a reminder for people today that every person who was different was a victim of hate during those terrible years of Nazi rule.