Schindler's List

If there is one single example of a film that is both excellent and thematically important, it is Schindler's List. Where else could you feel the indescribable horror and shame of the human deeds you have just seen, photographed in the most horrifying but at the same time most beautiful black and white composition imaginable? The scene with the little girl in the red coat, walking as a symbol of colourful innocence through pure hell, is probably the most powerful I have ever seen in a film, and it brings tears to my eyes every time; and even if it was the only one in the whole movie, I'd still never get this film out of my head – but it's not, not even close. Masterpiece. (05/05/2018)

Definitely one of the best films Steven Spielberg ever made. It's a powerful story, which is also told quite brutally at times, which might be surprising, even coming from Spielberg, or at least it was surprising in 1993. Great performances by the cast, which even the classic Spielberg pathos, though very subdued, does not ruin. (05/29/2016)

What can I write about this film if I don’t want to just dryly pull out all of the superlatives and assign them to every single component of its filmmaking? Welles had Citizen Kane, Coppola The Godfather, Kubrick A Space Odyssey and Spielberg has Schindler’s List. Portrayed by Ralph Fiennes, Amon Goeth is the personification of the collapse of the human spirit responsible for the greatest tragedy in our history. John Williams’s score is the pinnacle of contemporary film music, cinematographer Janusz Kaminski is an idol to me as a lover of black-and-white composition and the extermination of the Krakow ghetto is one of the most horrifying scenes that I have ever witnessed in a film. With Schindler’s List, Steven Spielberg fulfilled the purpose for which he became a director. And I would love to frame every shot from it and I wish that I could turn back time and prevent the events on which it is based. (05/27/2002)

Spielberg's sensitive precision, Williams's music, Kaminsky's cinematography, Neeson's eyes, Fiennes's villain, Kingsley's everything, the little girl in the red dress walking through the black and white film... An unforgettable story. PS: Finally seen in the cinema on the occasion of the 25th anniversary. Indescribable experience. (01/15/2008)

Someone once described Schindler's List as the building block of Holocaust film history. Its influence confirms this, of course. Nicky's Family is not the only project that has taken inspiration from it almost literally, as Steven Spielberg simply chose to speak a universal language for academics and ordinary people alike. (10/15/2022)