Nicholas Winton (Sir Anthony Hopkins), a distinguished Brit, spends his twilight years in a tranquil way. His wife Grete (Lena Olin) keeps pushing him to clear away his study. When he finally gets around to it, he comes across an old briefcase with photos from the past. In his memory, he travels to Prag in the year 1938. Thousands of Jews from Germany and Austria had fled there from the Nazis. Nicholas (Johnny Flynn) hears about it and travels to the Czech capital to help. On site, he is shocked by the conditions and joins the committee of Doreen Warriner (Romola Garai). He succeeds in evacuating hundreds of children to Britain with the help of his mother Babette (Helena Bonham Carter). But the invasion of the Wehrmacht is imminent, and Nicholas struggles with every single life they cannot save.

In his rock solid biopic, director James Hawes (Black Mirror) tells the true story of an upstanding man who doesn’t like to speak of the past. Winton just did what he thought was right, and continued to do charitable work even in old age, for which he was honored with the Order of the British Empire. It was only years later that his deeds came to light. He never wanted to be called the British Oskar Schindler. In an emotional ending with the adult “children of Winton“, director Hawes emphasizes how every single life saved is important. No audience member will not be moved and thanks to the focused performance of two-time Oscar winner Sir Anthony Hopkins, it doesn't descend into cheap sentimentality. A competently staged lesson in history that has additional gravitas in the current atmosphere.

Lars Tunçay

Translation: Elinor Lewy