‘One Life’ Review: Anthony Hopkins is on top form in a thrilling, if by-the-numbers, period piece

Anthony Hopkins recently played an older Jewish man who fled persecution as a child in James Gray’s Armageddon time. He goes somewhat further in this line A life, this time as British Jew Nicholas Winton, a real historical figure, who in his youth helped child refugees flee Czechoslovakia during World War II. In some ways it’s one of Hopkins’ best performances in recent years, beautifully underplayed, avoiding mannerisms or silly accents. It’s just a shame that the film itself, directed by James Hawes, with a script by Lucinda Coxon and Nick Drake, is a bit pedestrian and schematic. Still, that won’t stop it from traveling far to festivals and distribution is likely to appeal to older viewers, especially in Britain, where many seniors may remember the moment in the TV show. That’s life! in 1988 made Winton famous.

The film’s title is inspired by a Hebrew proverb, which is often quoted Schindler’s List, which roughly translates as: “He who saves one life saves the whole world.” Nicholas has indeed been described as a ‘British Oskar Schindler’, although he comes across as a very different kind of character from the one depicted in Thomas Keneally’s novel and Steven Spielberg’s film. Winton, his mother Babi (played here by Helena Bonham Carter) and his friends in the British Refugee Committee saved 669 children during the war, most of them Jewish, by taking them by train from Prague and to foster homes in Great Britain. Britain before the Nazis closed that escape route.

Although these efforts not only saved those children, but also meant that they would have children of their own years later, Nicky Winton still felt guilty that he could not save more, according to the book about him written by his daughter Barbara. on which the film is based. At its best, this film can be a reminder that every act of kindness, every life saved,… mitzvah in one way or another.

The film switches back and forth between the late 1980s and the run-up to and early days of World War II, just after the annexation of the Sudetenland in 1938. In the pre-war part of the film, Nicky (played by the protean Johnny Flynn, from Emma And Beast) is a banker working in London. He is used to a fairly cushy lifestyle, but becomes interested in the refugee problem when his friend Trevor (Alex Sharp) calls to say they can’t go skiing in the Alps because he, Trevor, is busy helping people avoid are murdered by the Nazis. Nicky goes to see Trevor in Prague anyway and is so moved by the plight of the people he meets, most of whom are living in tents as winter sets in, that he decides to help. He joins forces at the Committee with not only Trevor, but also powerful organizer Doreen Warriner (Romola Garai) and several local committee members.

Although he is not a linguist and has no contacts of his own in Prague, Nicky’s special skills include his tenacity and aptitude for paperwork. He is also the one who recognizes that their most effective course of action is to focus on the children and hope that they can bring their parents out at a later date. Between him and his mother Babi, a force of nature designed by Bonham Carter’s performance to flatter every Jewish mother who watches the film, they manage to confuse the bureaucracy on the British side, using publicity to find foster homes for the children in Britain, and especially to raise money.

The entire 1938-39 section is efficiently executed and uses locations in Prague, which fortunately were not too physically affected by the war, to enhance verisimilitude, as does the casting of Czech children. That said, the scenes of crying families and little ones looking terrified and sad at the train station become a bit repetitive. With all the tearful farewells amid the steam of the locomotive as the trains pull away, you’d almost think you were watching a movie from that period.

The scenes set in the 1980s ultimately pack a more emotional punch thanks to Hopkins’ patient, gentle performance. During this period, Nicky, now in his seventies, has promised his wife Grete (Lena Olin) to clean up some of the clutter from his office in time for Christmas. That leaves him sifting through his old scrapbooks where he recorded his work for the committee, keeping lists of the children they designated for transportation, all illustrated with photos he took himself. Over lunch with his old friend Martin (Jonathan Pryce), Nicky wonders what to do with his old material. He is considering donating it to a Holocaust museum, but wants to try to draw some attention to the plight of refugees, which was as hot a topic in 1988 as it is today.

The scrapbook ends up in the hands of the production team That’s life!, a BBC-made TV show helmed by broadcaster Esther Rantzen, which offered a bizarre factual mix of dirt-raking research, consumer advice and home videos of pets doing funny things, like a primal version of YouTube. Nicky is invited to sit in the audience to watch the show, where they promise to discuss his war experiences and… as they say these days, you won’t believe what happens next. The whole extraordinary scene, still deeply moving, featuring the real Nicky Winton, can be seen on YouTube, by the way, and it’s probably the way the film recreation recreates the moment so accurately that makes it so effective.

After this emotional climax, A life has trouble knowing where to go. It’s clear that the filmmakers want to send the viewer to another high point, although there isn’t much to laugh about as the WWII portion of the story bogs down. At least this is one case where the end credits, which explain what happened to everyone, deserve their upgrade.