It's summer 1942. Deportations begin in France's north but in the south, life has remained mostly the same. Jo Lalande is a young shepherd working for his grandpa Henri (Jean Reno) in a remote mountain village. He encounters a mysterious man after a bear attack. He follows the man to his hideout. His name is Benjamin. He is waiting for his daughter Anya while hiding at his widow mother Horcada (Anjelica Huston). Father and daughter got separated when Nazis rounded up Jews in Paris. Meanwhile, Jewish children are gathering at the home and Benjamin smuggles them onward into Spain.
It's a standard escaping from Nazis film. It doesn't really have the bite of those others. The Germans need a bit more ruthlessness. It suggests it but it doesn't do it until the end. It could have intensify in a couple of different spots. Two times, there are epic opportunities to have an escape in a storm. The first time, they retreated. The second time, they show it as a flashback. The bear should have served as bookends to the story but both times, the bear is only a background player. Neither times is satisfactory. There is good sincerity but this lacks the intensity needed.
It's a standard escaping from Nazis film. It doesn't really have the bite of those others. The Germans need a bit more ruthlessness. It suggests it but it doesn't do it until the end. It could have intensify in a couple of different spots. Two times, there are epic opportunities to have an escape in a storm. The first time, they retreated. The second time, they show it as a flashback. The bear should have served as bookends to the story but both times, the bear is only a background player. Neither times is satisfactory. There is good sincerity but this lacks the intensity needed.