'Europa Europa' and the cost of surviving fascism

'Europa Europa' and the cost of surviving fascism

"Europa Europa" is a powerful film by Agnieszka Holland, that tells the true-life story of Solomon Perel, a Jewish boy in Nazi Germany who survives the war through a series of unbelievable twists and turns. The film demonstrates the masks one must wear to protect one's true identity in the face of an evil regime. James and Teal's look a fascism on film concludes with this brilliant film from 1990.

'Swing Kids' and the Disneyfication of fascism

Swing heil! That's right, kids, in 1993, a little over six months before Steven Spielberg premiered "Schindler's List," Disney's short-live Hollywood Pictures came out with "Swing Kids," a film that attempts to tell the world something about fascism, but misses the mark.  Still, for all its schmaltz, does "Swing Kids" have something to say? James and Teal examine a film that does have some effective moments.

'Sophie Scholl: The Final Days' and the high price of resistance

"Sophie Scholl: The Final Days" is a devastating and tragic look at a true-life hero of the German resistance movement, The White Rose. To see the machinations of Nazism at work and its willingness to destroy its citizens who dare to resist tyranny is difficult to watch. This film is a powerhouse.

'Army of Shadows': A sobering look at resisting fascism

Jean-Pierre Melville's masterpiece, "Army of Shadows," is a gripping slow-burn look at the operations of the French Resistance during the Nazi occupation. Melville strips away the glamor and sentimentality of the resistance movement to show how unrewarding it can be to do ones duty when one's country is under occupation.  The film avoids nearly all conventions of the typical spy thriller, and makes its audience work for clues and answers. It's a true gut-punch.

'The Bridge': Hitler's youth pay the ultimate price

Bernhard Wicki’s powerful 1959 German anti-war film, "The Bridge" shows the tragedy and futility of following fascism to its final end. A group of high-school boys in a small German town during the final days of the war, can't wait to get into the fight for Germany, only to discover, far too late, that all they've been taught were lies. This week's film, "The Bridge" doesn't contain any shine, gloss, or dancing to David Bowie at the end. It's one of the most tragic looks at the destruction that fascism brings to its people.