The film is based on authentic material by Ida Fink, who lived through it all and wrote a book about it, and the film lives up to perfect realism and faithfulness to the horrible account of the destinies of just a few people out of the uncountable masses of victims in Poland during the war, both Jews and civilians. The story shows only the most brutal aspects of the Germans, there is not the slightest glimpse of any humanity in these cruel butchers, while we know there were exceptions. The acting is superb, there is no overacting in spite of some roles and occurrences inviting to exaggerations, but the restraint is perfect all the way, even as there are inevitable outbursts of passion and incidents. The circumstances of this film are very much reminding of Jerzy Kosinski's "The Painted Bird", as if you would expect him to appear as well as a fugitive in the Polish countryside. However, the atrocities are quite enough without him, and the inhuman horrors of the events are balanced by the eloquence of the composition, leading up to the magnificent concluding scenes, transporting the drama out into timelessness in a perfectly natural way. Everything is convincing and unfortunately more than convincing, bringing you into painfully close encounter with the very essence of the supreme inhumanity of war.