Based on true events, Jewish Salomon Sorowitsch, a criminal, master forger and counterfeiter is arrested in Germany as the Nazi party rises to power. He is sent to one of the many concentration camps within Germany and is soon put to work on forging both the English pound and the American dollar. His instinct for survival and lack of credible morals leads him to cooperate with the Nazis while some of his fellow Jewish counterfeiters attempt to stall and sabotage the operation, partially bank rolling the Nazi war effort. But even morally apt Sorowitsch soon realises this is more than just about one’s own survival as he becomes directly responsible for others’ lives.

One of the most powerful thought provoking films I’ve seen in some time. It is an engaging and beautifully crafted piece that portrays the torturous situation through the carnage of such concentration camps as well as showing the relatively preferential treatment they received by cooperating. But throughout the film we hear and see how the other prisoners are treated by their Nazi hosts, while they live in relative luxury. Constantly one is forced to ask themselves what they would do in such a situation.

The cinematography and camerawork glides us through the film, with a beautifully light and melodic score in direct contrast to such brutality. There are some superb performances from both sides delving deep into the psyche of the tyrants, the collaborators and the saboteurs.

It feels somewhat in the same vain as Schindler’s List but set in the centre of the maelstrom as opposed to on the edges. Mesmerizing and torturously compelling, focussing on themes of morality, loyalty and pride of the work they attempt, this is definitely a film worth watching over.

by Ian Cook