History in a Nutshell

Movie Review “The boy in the striped pajamas” The boy in the striped pajamas was a film of sadness that also educated me even more on the life of a camp inmate. I really liked the plot of the movie and how it centered on kids, who are innocent and don’t care about another’s race, religion, or ethnicity. I liked how the relationship of Bruno and Smuel developed and how they started hanging out by the fence all the time despite their completely different upbringings and experiences. One thing I found gruesome and horrible was the way they treated the Jews and how the Germans thought of them. It had to be included in the movie and I understand that but at some points, it hit me hard and made me understand even more what those people had to go through. For example, Pavel’s beating for innocently spilling a glass of wine shows how the Jews were treated like dirt and the horror they went through. I like how Bruno was not easily influenced by the propaganda his father brought upon him because he cared more about what a person was like and how they treated him, not because of race. I think this was a great choice of a movie by Mr. Ballenger because it showed what the Jews had to go through and gave me a perspective about how lucky I am. All in All, it was a great film that was very sad but is great for people to watch in order to learn about the dreadful life of the Jews during the Holocaust. This movie relates to class based on how the Germans treated the Jews. At one point in the movie, Ralf refers to them as “not really people,” when telling his son Bruno why he can’t go outside of the house and garden. Another quote is when Kotler says “They smell even worse when they burn.” Other examples of the mistreatment of the Jews were shown when Pavel gets beaten up for accidently spilling a little wine. If it were a German servant, it would have been more likely that a simple talk from Kotler to be more careful would of occurred. Another example is when Smuel becomes