Customer Reviews

The Island on Bird Street

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Based on a true story during WWII in Warsaw, Poland, it is the survival of an eleven year old Jewish boy separated from his father and uncle who are taken to work camps, from which no one returns. He has three things to sustain him: his pet white mouse, Snow; the book Robinson Crusoe; the promise of his father that he will return. The Nazis regularly patrol the bombed out buildings in the ghetto looking for stray Jews who may have escaped their clutches. It's survival in its most basic form. This overlooked film tells the amazing story of the imagination and wits of this 11 year old as lives day to day trying to survive against all odds. Ala Robinson Crusoe, he establishes a loft for himself in a bombed out building and uses every instinct he has to stay alive and not get captured. A fascinating story and well done film. Great camera work and editing. The many twists and turns in the story will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end. Strong performance by Jordan Kiziuk as the 11 year old Alex.

This almost feels like a foriegn film yet is in English and the actors have mixed accents. It is the story of a young Jewish boy in the getto areas of Warsaw during the German occupation of WWII. He is forced to become creative and resourseful to keep from being sent off to a concentration camp for a questionable fate. The mood and settings are very realistic and expertly filmed. The entire film takes place within a few block radius. Most of the ordeal the boy endures is written in facial expressions and sutle moments of joy and despair. The story is a moving testament to the human spirit in the midst of the atrocities of war. The sound track is classical in nature and builds slowly. The piano movements are as memorable as the violin solos of Shindler's List. A very nice piece of film making.

I normally shy away from Holocaust films. It seems somehow to belittle the experiences of those who lived through it, to sit in the comfort of my living room watching portrayals of their worst nightmares on a screen. But this intense, little-known film brings out all the horror with none of the gratuitous, and manages to be uplifting in the process.

The story is simple. A young Jewish boy, Alex, manages to hide during the forced emptying of his Polish ghetto during WWII - only to find himself trapped in the deserted ruins, which are walled off and landlocked within a bustling city. With little food or water, learning to avoid the patrols and other desperate escapees equally, he waits there, believing his father will come back for him.

Of special note are the few, but wonderfully rendered, exceptions to the Nazi brutality rule within the story - a soldier who, having hunted Alex into a corner, stares at the cowering boy and then turns and leaves; the reactions of a doctor outside the ghetto walls whom Alex resorts to for help.

This film deserves far more attention than it has received - at the very least, a DVD release.

A word of caution - despite the simplicity, this is no movie for children. The ugliness of the time and the hopelessness of Alex's situation is very real. Keep this gem reserved for the teenage crowd.

Finding himself left alone, except for "Snow" his pet mouse, this young Jewish boy is thrown into an exausting self-preservation mode when the Nazis are evacuating the Ghetto he lives in with his father and great uncle who are pulled away from him as they are being herded to the vehicles that will transport all the evacuees to their sure fated deaths in various consentration camps.

If he can only avoid detection by the Nazi Soldiers, the non-Jewish neighborhood kids/thugs and the ocassional path-crossings with others on the down-low. If he can make it through, what will he face next? What will be left of the world?

A wonderful story, superb acting and fantastic visuals to put you inside the Ghetto.

Powerful, haunting and bravery portrait in the middle of the WW2, when by those random' s caprices, a Jewish boy and his father are separated, in times of Nazi invasion. This boy will face to face by himself, day by day the horrors of the War under different perspectives. Fortunately his smartness will allow to build an improvised bunker: a desolated wreck that will work out as an attic. The way he builds the stairway and his undeniable love for his pet "Snow" (a sympathetic hamster), and his persuasiveness despite the worse days will earn his own honor 's medal.

A worthy picture that deals a matter depicted many times before, but that nevertheless maintains its own artistic integrity.

Go for this hidden gem and very unknown work.

I would give it more stars if I could.

Great movie. You will not be Disappointed. Touching story.
The little white mouse added something special to the hero
Alex brave journey through Poland's war torn times.

Young Alex finds himself in a predicament when his Uncle is shot and his father hauled off by the Germans during WWII in occupied Poland. Afterall any Jewish children are carted off to work camps or death camps. He manages to illude the Germans and create his own island of refuge as he reads "Robinson Cruesoe". His white pet mouse "Snow" substitutes for Friday. His daily rummaging for food and clothing nearly gets him caught more than once so he decides to build his own treehouse of sorts. I highly recommend this movie. The whole cast is great in addition to Jordan Kiziak as Alex, we have Patrick Bergin as his father and Jack Warden as his Uncle. Based on a true story I found it compelling and fascinating. Good quality DVD with great replayability. If you enjoyed this catch "Joyeux Noel" and "Silent Night".

CA Luster

I liked it. There was alot of suspense. It seemed there for awhile that the suspense didn't stop. It's amazing how this little boy survived, since a true story. Only one scene of a read nudity shot of the boy showering caught me off guard. But the over all film was well done.

This is a suspenseful account of a young man hiding from the Nazis in WWII occupied Poland. It is very helpful to use with students around the same age to teach them about the Nazi occupation. Students can do character studies, make predictions, draw conclusions, and develop alternative plot lines. This helps give a deep understanding of the situation for Jews and those in occupied Europe at that time. I begin with the book then use the film to compare and contrast. Fabulous!

Based on the 1985 semi-autobiographical novel by Israeli author Uri Orlev, "The Island on Bird Street" portrays a young Jewish boy's attempts to survive in a ghetto in Poland during WW II. Young Alex [Jordan Kizuik] is reassured by his father Stefan[Patrick Bergin] that he will return to find Alex upon the war's end [Stefan had been selected for deportation]. Alex manages to escape a similar fate or worse by eluding the Nazis, with the help of his old uncle [Jack Warden] who sacrifices his life to save Alex.

Upon the ghetto's liquidation, Alex finds himself totally isolated and having to rely upon his wits to survive. His only constant companion is "Snow", a white mouse and Alex is also sustained by reading and re-reading passages from Robinson Crusoe [which also inspires him to survive using whatever resources he can find].

The drama of Alex's survival unfolds at a steady and suspenseful pace - Alex soon discovers that there are other Jewish refugees just like him who are hiding in the ravaged ghetto and time and again, he sees these Jews being caught by the Nazis whilst eluding capture himself. By sheer ingenuity, Alex builds a sort of treehouse for himself in one of the derelict buildings in the ghetto and stares out of a window out onto the other side of the ghetto, where Polish Gentiles lead relatively ordinary lives, seemingly untouched by the Nazi atrocities. Eventually, events necessitate Alex's venturing out to the Aryan side, and though he realises the risks, Alex's adventurous streak wins over his caution. He is also lucky in coming across Polish Gentiles who sympathise with his plight, such as a Catholic priest, a Polish doctor who works for the Polish underground, and even makes a friend, a young girl who is kind and accepting of Alex, even after finding out that he's a Jew.

Despite everything, Alex is adamant and determined to wait the war out in the remnants of the ghetto - and hoping against hope that he will be reunited with his father. Alex's resilience shines through every scene, as does his extraordinary courage, and the young actor that plays Alex has done an amazing job in bringing credibility to his role as the young boy with an indomitable spirit.

"The Island on Bird Street" is a unique Holocaust drama as it focuses on one individual's experience, that of a young boy. Another Holocaust drama that is told from a young boy's viewpoint is "Fateless", about a young Hungarian boy's experiences in a concentration camp during WW II. Both movies are quality productions with strong leads and a compelling storyline. Note to parents and teachers : there are scenes of some characters including Alex drinking liquor, and also one scene with nudity [of Alex's entire back as he is taking a shower].