Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14227 in DVD
• Released on: 2002-03-18
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Black & White, Colour, Full Screen, PAL
• Original language: English, German
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 122 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Winner of the 2001 Oscar for Best Documentary, Into The Arms Of Strangers attempts to expose and understand one of the forgotten travesties of WWII. While the evacuation of British children during the Second World War has become the stuff of legend, the rescue of 10,000 Jewish children from Germany is less well known. This programme of "kindertransport" was to provide a vital escape route to England for many children, but would also leave many heartbroken families behind to face an uncertain future at the hands of the Nazis. Told mainly in the first person by those who made the journey, this American produced documentary is a moving testament to the most innocent victims--one and a half million children perished in the Holocaust.

We may have become used to tales of Nazi's brutality in the 21st century, but it is always shocking to see the emotions that still run deep for those who experienced and survived these events first hand. As the story--narrated by Dame Judi Dench--unfolds it becomes clear that although the kindertransport was one of the great humanitarian efforts of the 20th century it was not without its flaws, none more so than the internment and repatriation of many of the evacuees that followed once war with Germany was declared. A very real historical document, Into The Arms Of Strangers is highly recommended for those looking to delve a little deeper into the travesties of War. --Phil Udell

DVD Description
In the nine months prior to World War II, 10,000 children left their families, their homes and their childhood and took a journey that would change their lives forever.

Narrated by Dame Judi Dench, this moving documentary details the historic events leading up to the journey from chaos in Europe to safety in Britain. Recalling the tears, the trauma, the waiting, and in a few cases, the joyous reunion, surviving "kinder" tell their story as never told before.

DVD Special Features:

Audio Commentary by Producer Deborah Oppenheimer and Writer/Director Mark Jonathan Harris
Audio Commentaty by Editor Kate Amend, Sound Designer and Re-recording Mixer Gary Rydstrom, Archival Researcher Corrine Collett and Composer Lee Holdridge
Interview with Lord Richard Attenborough
Additional Interviews with Kinder
Photo Gallery
Awards
Premiere Footage: London and Berlin
Historical Artifacts : Memorabilia from the Kinder, Kindertransport Instructions
Theatrical Trailer
DVD-Rom Study Guide

Synopsis
INTO THE ARMS OF STRANGERS, the stunning, heartrending documentary feature directed by Mark Jonathan Harris and narrated by Judi Dench, details the rescue of 10,000 German, Austrian, and Czechoslovakian Jewish children just prior to the outbreak of WWII. A labor of love for producer Deborah Oppenheimer, whose mother was part of the kindertransport, the documentary combines powerful testimonies from now elderly--kinder--with rare archival film footage. Following the Kristallnacht pogroms in November 1938, a mission began to remove Jewish children to the only nation willing to harbor them--England. Parents lucky enough to secure their children places had the heartbreaking task of packing a single suitcase and putting their child on a train, promising to follow soon after. Most of the parents, however, died in Hitler's concentration camps. In England, the kinder were faced with new problems--living with strangers who spoke another language, while simultaneously missing and feeling abandoned by their parents. Recounting their compelling, gut-wrenching stories, the pain is still raw for the elderly kinder--but they are survivors in every sense of the word. Their fortune, though traumatizing, is underscored by the film's final, sobering statistic: 1.5 million children perished during the Holocaust.

Customer Reviews

One of the most moving yet little known acts of mercy
The 'Kindertransport' was an initiative of the British Government in late 1938 to allow the temporary migration of Jewish children at risk in the German occupied countries (Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia)to Britain, where they would be housed by British families. The government at the time, decided only children would be allowed, as they would not place a burden on the economy by taking jobs of British adults. This was at a time when no country was willing to take in Jews, despite being aware of the pogroms since Hitler's ascension to power and the horrific events on Kristallnacht in November of '38. Kristallnacht was the catalyst for the government's debate and acceptance of the scheme to allow limited entry to Britain. The Germans agreed, making sure that if one adult escort failed to return to Germany, the transports would be stopped. The transports began and only stopped when war was declared in September of '39, by which time almost 10,000 children had arrived safely in Britain.

Their's was not always a warm welcome. They were billeted in holiday camps and 'adoptive families' came and 'shopped' for a child they liked the look of. Many children remained in these camps for some time, either because they were too old, or not appealing enough to the carers. A small proportion were even abused - taken by families that used them as unpaid domestics. All of them missed their parents and were constantly worried about their welfare.

This incredibly moving documentary is told in the first person by children who migrated, their adoptive carers, and in narration by Dame Judi Dench. It is a tale of unutterable sadness and grief, yet one that must be told and heard. It is also a tale of how only one country made any real attempt to save Jewish children who were already being persecuted and would certainly face a worse future in Europe.

Not being a parent, I cannot even begin to imagine what it must have been like to consign your child to migration to 'safe' England, when your own fate was far from secure. Most parents believed they would never see their children again, and in the vast majority of cases this fear was realised.

This documentary is of such importance that it forms a compulsory part of the school curriculum in Germany today. Watch it, but be prepared to be greatly moved.

Riveting
A DVD that makes you realise just what would have happened to these children had they not been allowed to leave.

Should be part of the school cirriculum.

Very moving
This is a very interesting dvd, very atmospheric and moving. The only thing I would say is that the speaking on it is hard to hear due the music, but it's a good dvd and I will read the book :)