Now that Quentin Tarrantino is getting attention (which he so hates) for his yet-to-be-released bloody World War II revisionist tale about a band of Jewish assassins (Inglourious Basterds), there is something even more striking about the fact that Edward Zwick’s Definance is based on a true story. A couple of ruffian brothers lead an inconceivably large Jewish refugee camp/militia outpost in the middle of the Belorussian woods, under constant threat of being discovered, killed, or sent to death camps. The brothers, excellently cast and played by a couple of underappreciated actors named Daniel Craig and Liev Schreiber, do just about anything needed to survive, including occasionally stealing from nearby farmer or occasionally shooting a few German soldiers who stumble too far into the sticks.
Regardless of its quality, the film is required viewing simply for the fact that it’s true story is an extraordinary testament to human mettle, a stark contrast to the well-known story of helplessness experienced by so many Jews during the reign of Hitler and his henchmen. It just so happens, though, that the story translates wonderfully onto the cinema screen, and Zwick and the large supporting cast (including the younger brother played by Jamie Bell) are in top form. The film is 2 hours and 17 minutes long, and there are scenes about two-thirds of the way through that could have, a probably should have, been sacrificed or shortened in order to maintain the dramatic energy of the film. That aside, however, you’d be hard-pressed to find a film that so effectively explores the often competing reactions of revenge and survival that emerge in the presence of war and aggression.
Here are this morning’s Oscar-nominated films, alphabetically. The nominees for foreign language film and documentary feature are compiled at the end of the list. (Short format nominees are listed in a 
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