- THE REAL ST. PATRICK— Who was this influential servant of Christ honored by the Irish? What is his TRUE and inspiring story?
- WISDOM— What is it and how can I become wiser?
- PURITY— Why should I save sex for marriage?
- EFFECTIVE RESPONSES— How can I best respond to tough questions from unbelievers?
- Novocaine
- Mufasa: Mickey 17
- Captain America: Brave New World
- Paddington in Peru
- Love Hurts
- Flight Risk
- Wolf Man
- Survive
- A Complete Unknown
- Maria
Harrison Ford, American film actor and producer—“The Call of the Wild” (2020), “Star Wars,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” “Firewall,” “Crossing Over,” “42,” “Patriot Games,” “Clear and Present Danger”. Ford is the 4th highest-grossing domestic box-office star of all time. • Faith: Agnosticism, practices Tibetan Buddhism, following the Dalai Lama, although Ford’s religious background is Jewish and Catholic • Worldview: Environmentalism (activist), Progressive Liberalism (activist, and outspoken, close friend of former President Bill Clinton)
Ben Affleck, American film actor, director, producer—“The Way Back,” “Argo,” “The Town,” “He’s Just Not That Into You,” “Pearl Harbor,” “Paycheck,” “Good Will Hunting,” “Daredevil” • Faith: Apparently Secularism, although he has some affinity to the teachings of Buddhism • Worldview: Progressive Liberalism (activist), Gay marriage supporter
Please take a moment now to pray for these influential people (prayer suggestions).
The Counterfeiters
for some strong violence, brief sexuality/nudity and language.
Reviewed by: David Simpson
CONTRIBUTOR
| Moral Rating: | Offensive |
| Moviemaking Quality: |
|
| Primary Audience: | Adults |
| Genre: | War History Drama |
| Length: | 1 hr. 38 min. |
| Year of Release: | 2008 |
| USA Release: |
February 22, 2008 (limited) DVD release: August 5, 2008 |
money in the Bible
sin and the fall of man
war in the Bible
What is the Biblical perspective on war? Answer
VIOLENCE—How does viewing violence in movies affect the family? Answer
Should I save sex for marriage? Answer
What are the consequences of sexual immorality? Answer
- “The Diary of Anne Frank” (1959)
- “The Hiding Place” (1975)
- “Schindler’s List” (1993)
- “The Man Who Captured Eichmann” (1996)
- “Jakob the Liar” (1999)
- “Anne Frank: The Whole Story” (2001)
- “Uprising” (2001)
- “Charlotte Gray” (2001)
- “The Pianist” (2003)
- “Bonhoeffer” (2004)
- “Paper Clips” (2004)
- “Katyn” (2007)
- “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” (2008)
- “The Counterfeiters” (2008)
- “Defiance” (2008)
- “The Reader” (2008)
- “The Debt” (2010)
- “Ida” (2013)
- “The Woman in Gold” (2015)
- “The Promise” (2016—Armenian Christian Holocaust)
- “Anne Frank: Parallel Stories” (2019)
- “The Zone of Interest” (2023)
- “White Bird: A Wonder Story” (2023)
| Featuring | Karl Markovics, August Diehl, Devid Striesow, Martin Brambach, August Zirner, Veit Stübner, Sebastian Urzendowsky, Andreas Schmidt, Tilo Prückner, Lenn Kudrjawizki, Norman Stoffregen, Bernd Raucamp, Gode Benedix, Oliver Kanter, Dirk Prinz, Hille Beseler, Erik Jan Rippmann, Tim Breyvogel, Dolores Chaplin, Louie Austen, Michael Blohn, Marie Bäumer, Arndt Schwering-Sohnrey, Jan Pohl, Matthias Lühne, Holger Schober, Peter Straub, Werner Daehn, Leander Modersohn |
| Director | Stefan Ruzowitzky |
| Producer | Josef Aichholzer, Nina Bohlmann, Henning Molfenter, Babette Schröder, Caroline von Senden, Charlie Woebcken, Sonja B. Zimmer, |
| Distributor |
“It takes a clever man to make money; it takes a genius to stay alive.”
“Die Fälsche” (“The Counterfeiters”) is a film of delightful touch, heartbreaking stories, and breathtaking reality. Set during the Nazi’s reign of terror over western Europe, it transports us to the tale of Saloman “Sally” Sorowitsch (Karl Markovics), a Jewish counterfeiter, and also one of the best. He lives a playboy lifestyle in Berlin, until his luck runs out when he is caught by the SS.
He is transported first to the Mauthausen, then the Sachsenhausen concentration camps. Using his skills and ingenuity, he is put in charge of a forging team, run by his captive officer, Friedrich Herzog. Their plan is to use the Jewish prisoners to create forged British pounds sterling, and then the US dollar, in order to flood their markets and crash their economies. The team, many of whom were selected out of Auschwitz, are faced with the choice to follow their orders, or to fight back by disrupting the task they’ve been given.
The content is fitting for a POW film, and also one based around the Nazis and their beliefs.
Language: a**hole, 3 uses of f**k, and a scattering of racial slurs targeting Jews, and in one occasion, black people
Violence: A man slices his wrists in a suicide attempt after learning his wife and children have been murdered in Auschwitz, he survives but later kills himself in the same method. Sally is urinated on by a prison guard. A prisoner is seen being beaten to death, with violent hits to the head. A prisoner is shot in the head onscreen, and another is seen after being shot in the head. There are many other threats of violence against prisoners, as well as the use of a knife in a fight.
Sex/Nudity: There is one brief non-nude scene of sexuality, and some rear female nudity shortly afterward. There is a brief glimpse of male genitalia in a non-sexual manner.
No one needs to be told that the Nazi regime was evil and abused human rights. But what is easy to pass over is that the main protagonist in “The Counterfeiters” is a criminal, and a persistent hardened criminal, too. At the end of the day, we want the Nazis to lose, no matter who beats them. This is what Sally and his crew go about doing. Eventually. Sally starts out with an “adapt or die” attitude, willing to do anything in order to further benefit himself in a bad situation. Although this survivor mentality is to be admired, it is not something encouraged in a Fascist regime.
As believers, it’s important for us to be careful about sympathizing with people who lack morals, and who too easily commit violence or crimes in their own defense. The Bible encourages us to be above reproach and not to sell ourselves out to save our own skins. We are not of this world, and our bodies are only worth so much compared to our souls.
Overall, I’m an advocate of this film. It’s in German, with a mixture of Russian. It’s well shot, and the story is based on historical fact. Karl Markovics is best known from “Unknown” starring Liam Neeson. His performance is a great one, playing the low-key survivor in the camps, and the mysterious playboy outside of them. It’s fully worth the watch, if you can keep track with the subtitles. It’s a story of life.
Violence: Extreme / Profanity: Heavy / Sex/Nudity: Moderate to heavy
See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in Christian Spotlight reviews are those of the reviewers themselves, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Christian Answers.
