The Devil's Arithmetic

Starring:Kirsten Dunst, Brittany Murphy, Paul Freeman, Mimi Rogers, Louise Fletcher, Lilo Baur, Nitzan Sharron, Shelly Skandrani, Daniel Brocklebank, Kirsty McFarland, Rachel Roddy, Ieva Jackeviciute, Philip Rham, Daniel Rausch, Paulina Soloveicik, Stewart Bick, Rimantas Bagdzevicius, Liubomiras Lauciavicius, Sonata Paliukaityte, Vaidotas Martinaitis
Director: Donna Deitch
Studio: Showtime Ent.
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
Executive producers Dustin Hoffman and Mimi Rogers present the truth of the Holocaust so a new generation can understand why it must never be forgotten. Kirsten Dunst plays Hannah, a modern teen more concerned with trends than history. During the traditional Passover dinner, she zones out as her relatives harp about concentration camps. But then Hannah passes through a portal to the past, where she becomes her own ancestor in Poland during the Nazi persecution of the Jews.

Director Donna Deitch provides an infinite library of Holocaust detail, re-creating the period with minute dedication. Haunting images, every costume, every hair, every light and shadow conspire to maintain a sense of desolate desperation. Suspense pervades as escapes fail and mothers with newborns are taken away. Only the magical context of the story, taken from the original children's novel by Jane Yolen, allows for a life-affirming ending. The performances may not be multifaceted but, considering the single-mindedness of the tale, the deep commitment of the actors makes every moment real and meaningful. Dunst seems able to carry a movie herself, and Brittany Murphy is mesmerizing as Hannah's sweet cousin Rivkah.

Amazon.com

Executive producers Dustin Hoffman and Mimi Rogers present the truth of the Holocaust so a new generation can understand why it must never be forgotten. Kirsten Dunst plays Hannah, a modern teen more concerned with trends than history. During the traditional Passover dinner, she zones out as her relatives harp about concentration camps. But then Hannah passes through a portal to the past, where she becomes her own ancestor in Poland during the Nazi persecution of the Jews.

Description

Based on the popular novel by Jane Yolen, a typical American teenager gets transported back in time and experiences firsthand the horrors of the Holocaust and discovers the meaning of her family's heritage.

Customer Reviews:

The Best I've Seen in a Long Time.......2007-06-27

The Devil's Arithmetic is one of the most inspiring movies that I have seen in a long time. If you want to know about the Halocaust, then this is the film for you. Be sure to have a tissue handy, for you will be blessed thru tears and laughter.You'll learn to love God's people, the Jews, as I have.

Not bad, but disappointing after the book........2007-06-18

I purchased this movie to go along with my sixt[...] Holocaust unit, in which we read the Jane Yolen novel on which the movie is based. The changes were a disappointment to both me and my students. In fact, of my 60 students, 59 wrote they were disappointed with the movie version after reading the book (they enjoyed the book a great deal). While the movie is not poor, it doesn't measure up to the book, but that seems to be the norm. It provided a great assignment of comparison/contrast, as mentioned by J. Potter "Teacher with a Mission".

Interesting, provocative and powerful!.......2007-05-09

I was born years after the holocaust occured. Decades after.

What I know of it, I know of books, movies and stories told to me by those who lived through it and experienced it first hand (or even second hand). To that end, I have no true reference point to say whether or not this movie was true to life. What I do know is that it stayed true to the horrors that were the holocaust. What I do know is that it runs parallell to virtually every story I've ever been told about this horrific series of events.

The images are powerful and stark, but not so disturbing that a Junior High child will be scarred for life. I do believe it will move them. I do believe it will give them their first real glimpse into this horrifying period of Mankind's history. It will give them a tiny glimpse into the heart of true EVIL. I do believe it will cause many inquisitive children to want to learn the truth about this tragedy. It will give them pause to talk to Grandma or Great Grandma about what they experienced as a child. It will breed empathy and sympathy. I know this because I've seen it have this effect on kids.

The movie itself takes a fantasy approach to a real world, historical event. You're carried into the dream world of Hannah, (Dunst) who is somehow magicaly transported back to the days of World War 2. What she experiences transforms her from a typical "apathetic" teen to a wisdom-possessing child on the verge of womanhood. It grants her an understanding of the world few children can ever truly possess. Through this dream (or is it a dream?) her eyes are opened to reality. The line between good and evil becomes a bit more clouded, though the truth about Mankind's existence becomes all too clear.

A great way to introduce children to this disturbing period of history. a strong story, worthy of praise. Contrary to what some others have felt, I felt as though it was a decent adaptation of the book.

Heart-wrenching.......2007-04-07

We had a week long study of the Holocaust. We watched this movie with 7th and 8th graders. I think it was the first time that you could hear dust fall in the classroom. It is meaningful and heartwrenching and is a good starting point to discuss persecutions that are happening around the globe today.

A disappointment.......2007-03-23

If you have ever read the book The Devil's Arithmetic then you know that the movie is by far a disappointment. I ended up using it as a teaching lesson and helping my students learn to compare and contrast. However I really expected more from the movie. It was such a great opportunity for the film makers to help teenagers of today make a real world connection to the atrocities of the Holocaust. Instead they changed the plot around only keeping the main idea of the book, cut essential characters, changed the main characters age and her relationship with a significant minor character, added a poor sub plot of a love interest, and the list goes on. The book itself is so powerful that I can not see how the author was not repulsed by the drastic changes made to such a well thought out and organized novel. I would not recommend this movie to anyone unless they were looking for a movie with some big names and terrible acting.

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