The reality of the Holocaust extends far beyond the realm of human comprehension. Today, we cannot fathom that such a tragedy occurred only half a century ago. We fail to realize the horror of the event. And "Jakob the Liar," the newest release from Columbia Pictures, fails to realize it as well.
The film takes place inside a Jewish ghetto in Nazi-occupied Poland near the close of the World War II. In the opening, we see Jakob Heym (Robin Williams), a pancake peddler, sitting by the exterior walls and under the tree where he first kissed his wife. Director Peter Kassovitz shoots him from above, and the high angle makes him appear all the more defenseless. He's alone, looking for something, hoping. As Jakob states later in the film, "There's always hope."
From this indefensible position, Jakob delivers the first line of the movie, a vaudevillian joke about Hitler and a psychic. The joke balances humor with discomfort and makes for a surprisingly auspicious beginning. The viewer begins to believe Jakob: Perhaps there is hope yet.
But then "Jakob" starts heading in the wrong direction with as much force as the unmistakably symbolic black train that rolls through nearly every sequence in the picture. The film argues for the importance of access to information - which is taken for granted in today's society. But it doesn't seem aware of its setting; invoking the Holocaust isn't necessary to make this point.
The desire for knowledge incites the plot, as Jakob chases a flying newspaper through the ghetto and into a restricted area. (The flight pattern of the newspaper, obviously a result of special effects and not the wind, recalls the feather from "Forrest Gump," its apparent inspiration.)
There Jakob overhears a news broadcast about Russian troops advancing toward the ghetto. Ecstatic about the news, he spreads it to his friends, Jakob telling them he has a radio. This innocent lie spreads throughout the ghetto, and Jakob becomes a veritable prophet. He wants to tell the truth, but is afraid of the consequences. The Jewish doctor, Prof. Kirchbaum (Armin Muehller-Stahl) claims that since the discovery of Jakob's secret, there has not been a single suicide, previously a regular occurrence in the ghetto.
So Jakob continues the charade and begins to broadcast fabricated news about Allied victories and the impending liberation. Meanwhile, he's also trying to care for and hide a young girl (Hannah Taylor Gordon) whose parents are in a concentration camp. Soon, a resistance begins to form and Jakob is elected leader - all this over a made-up radio.
It would be impossible not to compare "Jakob" with last year's "Life Is Beautiful," though this film actually was shot before Roberto Benigni's inspired fable. "Jakob the Liar" reawakens - for good reason - the fears that people incorrectly had of Benigni's film before its release. It trivializes the tragedy.
There's a good reason that Neil Simon never set a play in a concentration camp: The terror of the Jewish plight was all consuming. Unfortunately, Kassovitz uses the Holocaust as a backdrop, oversimplifying the line between good and evil.
We observe many people dying in this movie, but we don't feel for them; neither the characters nor their calamities are properly developed. The only honest performance comes from Muehller-Stahl: Kirchbaum is real. The rest of the characters are relegated to a Disney quality struggle.
Williams is surprisingly and thankfully subdued (he doesn't convert his Star of David into a clown nose). Still, it's impossible to escape the fact that you're watching Robin Williams in a Jewish ghetto, and he definitely doesn't belong there.
Every year, countless movies are made that are worse than this one. However, they usually concern hijacked trucks or asteroids plummeting to Earth, not the single greatest tribulation of the 20th Century. The film seems unaware of its purpose, attempting to resolve this identity crisis through a dual ending reminiscent of "Wayne's World."
"Jakob the Liar" doesn't make you laugh. It doesn't make you cry. It doesn't make you think, either, and that is inexcusable.
Grade: D
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