Netflix nightcap: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a film about Nazis and the Holocaust from the perspective of a little boy. He and his family move away to “the country” so the father, a Nazi soldier can be in charge of a concentration camp. The little boy, Bruno, gets bored at their new home and takes off to the country and for exploring. He runs into a strange “farm” where people wear striped pajamas and act peculiar. He meets a little boy on the other side of the fence, wearing those funny striped pajamas, and befriends him.

The storyline is a unique one in terms of Holocaust films, as the story mostly flows from a child’s thought process and confusion about the Holocaust. It’s interesting to view all of this through a child’s perspective, as young Bruno was lonely and met a nice friend, albeit on the more unfortunate side of the fence.

The movie is in English, which confused me at first because it was British English, so I thought they were British Nazis for the longest time. Languages and accents can be confusing in movies if the subject matter doesn’t pertain to a specific language. But yeah, they are German.

It’s a touching film that opens up a realm of thought focused on what children on both sides of the fence understood and didn’t understand about what was happening throughout Nazi Germany. It makes you think about your curiosity and confusion about certain things as a child as you put yourself in these little boys mindsets about death, imprisonment and friendship. Definitely a good movie.

Oh, and Lupin from Harry Potter plays the Nazi dad. It’s always fun to spot a Harry Potter actor!

Follow 20poorandfabulous on Facebook and Pinterest. Just do it. You’ll feel nice. I swear.