Friday, August 12, 2011

sarah's key


If a film features Kristin Scott Thomas then you (well, ok, me!) just know that it’ll be worth seeing. The retired/school-university holiday crew (Gareth, Iona, Eilidh, Moira+me) went to the Watershed yesterday afternoon to see Gilles Paquet-Brenner’s latest film. It’s based on Taliana de Rosnay’s novel about a shocking, little-known moment of French history. It’s partly set in Paris in 1942 and tells the story of when Jews were being rounded up at the Nazis' bidding, herded into a sports centre before being sent on to the death camps. The “Sarah” from the film’s title is a 10-year old who escapes from one of the death camps; KST plays a journalist researching the story. It’s an impressive, powerful film – slightly spoilt, in my view, by the somewhat over-schmaltzy last few minutes.
Certainly worth seeing.
PS: I know this shows my age, but the name of this film reminded me of Sarah Keays (of Cecil Parkinson fame)! Maybe they should have come up with a different name to the film, just to avoid embarrassment to the old Thatcherite faithful?

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