12 Great Movies That You'll Never Watch Again (And Why)
9. The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas (2008)
What It's About: Based on Irish novelist John Boynes book of the same name, Mark Hermans movie follows two 8-year-old boys as they form an unlikely friendship on the grounds of a Second World War Nazi extermination camp. It isnt a friendship made to last, however, as one of the children is a prisoner there while the other is the son of the Nazi in charge.
Why It's Great: The holocaust told through the naïve eyes of two young kids puts a whole new spin on the atrocities that took place in 1940s Europe, as engrossing as Anne Franks diary with the added angle of the affect the massacre had on the innocent children of countless evil men. In the end, despite objections from some viewers that the film trivializes the camps and perpetuates the idea that those without direct involvement can claim innocence, this is a deeply moving movie that is less about historical fact and more about the innate wisdom of children.
Why You'll Never Watch It Again: If you havent read the book and youre sitting through this movie, youre hopeful that Bruno will help Shmuel escape the camp and that his hard-faced father will see sense and perhaps find a household job for the boy, eventually maybe even coming to care for him. In reality, things work out the opposite way, and when Bruno breaks into the camp and ends up in the gas chamber your only pleasure comes from knowing that his father now has to feel the same pain he has afflicted upon countless other parents.