Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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123 of 124 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
INSPIRING SAGA OF A HEROIC FAMILY IN NAZI OCCUPIED HOLLAND, December 16, 2000
This is the true story of the heroic Ten Boom family who, during the Nazi occupation of The Netherlands. asked themselves the question, "If not us...who; if not now...when?" They answered it, and ultimately their response cost most of them their lives. This is their story, as told from the perspective of the sole survivor, Corrie Ten Boom.
The Ten Booms were devoutly Christian and lived a simple life, working in their watch shop that had been in their family for over a hundred years. When the Nazis occupied Holland, they were appalled by the treatment of their fellow Jewish citizens at the hands of the Nazis. Initially, the seventy year old patriarch of the family, played to perfection by Arthur O'Connell, took to wearing a Jewish star himself in sympathy with their oppressed Jewish friends.
As time went on, members of this heroic family began working with an underground, partisan group. When it became clear that Jews were being targeted for death and deportation, however, the family also began to hide terrified Jews in their home, after constructing a false wall in one of their bedrooms, thereby creating a secret room.
Eventually denounced by someone to the Nazis, they are arrested in their home which is then torn apart by the Gestapo, in their search for the Jews they believe to be hiding there. At the time of their arrest, the Ten Boom home was filled to capacity with Jews in hiding. So well concealed was the hidden room that had been created by the erection of the false wall, that these poor, terrified Jews managed to escape detection.
The five Ten Booms, however, did not fare so well and were sent to the notorious Ravensbruck death camp, where Corrie and her sister, Betsie, managed to stay together. It is here that they learn the true depths of man's inhumanity to man, and Corrie's Christian faith is sorely tested.
Betsie, affectingly played by the superb Julie Harris, does not survive the rigors and deprivations of Ravensbruck and dies. Within two weeks of her beloved sister's death, Corrie is miraculously released from Ravensbruck. It is years later that she learns that her release was a result of clerical error and that shortly after her release, middle-aged women, such as she, were systemically being put to death.
Corrie was the only member of the Ten Boom family to survive the concentration camp experience. She told their story in a book upon which the movie is based. At the end of the film, the real Corrie Ten Boom, in her eighties at the time of the filming, appears and, in a profoundly moving way, tells why she told the story of her family. She is a stark reminder of the innate goodness to be found in humanity and is a strong counterpoint to the cruelty of the Nazi regime.
I first saw this movie when it was first released in the mid nineteen seventies. It was as moving then, as it is now, twenty five years later. The themes which it touches upon are timeless. This superbly made film with its haunting musical score is peppered with award caliber performances. It is simply a great movie...Bravo!
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75 of 78 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Key of Promise, August 4, 2002
Running "The Hiding Place" through a video player can unlock the door to a place of safety-- a reverent, joyful chamber of promise. This cannot be a piece of fiction, for in its unlikely construction we see and hear Truth manifesting itself (Himself) through the story of two precious "old maids" of the Netherlands and their watchmaker father. We might, upon a casual viewing, consider this family brave, heroic, self-sacrificing in their efforts to conceal Jews during the World War II Nazi occupation of Holland. But having lived with this story since I was 13 when I heard Corrie ten Boom speak in my church, and having read the book and played the video countless times as an adult, I have come to see that the ten Boom family was neither brave or heroic, but rather "occupied" themselves with a glorious intruder. He came and transformed their "war efforts" and the resulting torture they endured in concentration camps into an astounding (but Biblically typical)"context" for communion with Himself. Corrie and Betsie and their earthly father would be the first to say that the Lord Jesus Christ is the hero of their incredible passage through hell. And perhaps most amazing of all, they would enthusiastically express that He translated this dark journey into a profoundly beautiful experience saturated with the light, joy, safety and power of His presence. But this was all a secret. Not everyone saw it at the time it was happening, the movie may hide it as well. My prayer would be that as this story unfolds on film, He will unlock the door of this mystery to every viewer. Interestingly, when this movie was being made in the mid 1970's, the real Corrie ten Boom was on the set during the entire filming process -- or rather she was close at hand. Many days she would lock herself in a hotel room and pray... pray that He would open the door to Himself through the film. This time alone in prayer was not a burden, nor was she pleading, petitioning a distant, indifferent source of power for a personal favor. She was simply spending time with her Friend and her God in His hiding place, asking Him to bring glory to Himself through this special story He began orchestrating through her life during in the 1940's... and is continuing to unfold...
In short, this film in infused with stuff bigger than itself. It is worthy of many viewings. The performances (a transcendent Julie Harris, a vulnerable, annointed Jeannette Clift), the haunting, beautiful musical score, the straightforward direction and its reverent tone towards Christ(something very rare in cinema), all contribute to a "Portrait" of Truth and Promise. This isn't film making -- it's key turning and finger pointing. Peek inside and see. He is beautiful. "And I will give you the treasures of darkness, and hidden wealth of secret places, In order that you may know that it is I, The Lord, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name." Isaiah 45:3
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45 of 45 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very inspiring, September 11, 1999
By A Customer
Based on a true story, this movie portrays the courage and faith of a Dutch family as they risk their lives hiding Jews during WWII, thus obeying a higher law out of love towards God and His Chosen People. This a faithful rendition of Corrie Ten Boom's book by the same title, one of the best videos I have ever seen. Even after watching it many times, it still moves me to the point of tears!
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