The Devil's Arithmetic
by Donna Deitch
List Price:
Our Price: $10.99
You Save: $3.99 (27%)
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Buy Used: from $8.06 (click here)
Category: DVD
See more DVD releases
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
DVD Cover Information
Actor: Brittany Murphy, Kirsten Dunst, Louise Fletcher, Mimi Rogers, Paul FreemanDirector: Donna Deitch
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 97 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-09-21
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Showtime Ent.
Movie Reviews of The Devil's Arithmetic
Movie Review: DISTURBING, TRUE, EXCELLENT
Summary: 5 Stars
THE DEVIL'S ARITHMETIC
The Holocaust happened and is a horrible part of history. It is also a delicate subject to discuss, read about, or watch on the big screen.
I rented this movie because I am a fan of Ms. Dunst and because this time period in history fascinates me. I can barely stand to think about the Holocaust, yet it is something that keeps calling my name, so I try to read about it and learn all I can.
This movie -- also a book -- was well done. A young girl, a typical teenager who does not want to partake in her family's religious rituals or listen to stories from the survivors of death camps, is magically transported back to 1941. The entire town, including Hannah, are immediately picked up and put into a death camp. This would include her favorite aunt, who is now a young teenage girl in 1941. A few other 1980 relatives are also present at the camps. As Hannah's story is told we are witness to such tragedy and evil, yet the goodness of human nature is also evident over and over again.
Ms. Dunst plays Hannah, past and present with style and grace. The conditions of concentration camps are horrible enough when reading about them but when you actually see and hear and witness this first-hand through the wonder of movies, it is heart-breaking.
I totally enjoyed this movie and cried myself senseless throughout. Because senseless is what the Holocaust was. If movies like this can help educate and show people how things were, it is a great learning tool. This book and/or movie should be shown in high schools so students can really understand what happened back then.
Read the book or watch the movie, or do both. You will not be sorry!
Thank you!
Pam
Summary of The Devil's Arithmetic
Executive producers Dustin Hoffman and Mimi Rogers present the truth of the Holocaust so a new generation can understand why it must never be forgotten. Kirsten Dunst plays Hannah, a modern teen more concerned with trends than history. During the traditional Passover dinner, she zones out as her relatives harp about concentration camps. But then Hannah passes through a portal to the past, where she becomes her own ancestor in Poland during the Nazi persecution of the Jews.Director Donna Deitch provides an infinite library of Holocaust detail, re-creating the period with minute dedication. Haunting images, every costume, every hair, every light and shadow conspire to maintain a sense of desolate desperation. Suspense pervades as escapes fail and mothers with newborns are taken away. Only the magical context of the story, taken from the original children's novel by Jane Yolen, allows for a life-affirming ending. The performances may not be multifaceted but, considering the single-mindedness of the tale, the deep commitment of the actors makes every moment real and meaningful. Dunst seems able to carry a movie herself, and Brittany Murphy is mesmerizing as Hannah's sweet cousin Rivkah.
The message is powerfully direct, but the film avoids extreme violence in deference to young audiences. The theme is enshrined in the Rivkah's words: "We must stay alive to tell everyone what we've been through." Indeed, when Hannah returns to the present, she is a new woman, with a profound love of her culture and a religious respect for the value of all human life. --Lloyd Chesley
Based on the popular novel by Jane Yolen, a typical American teenager gets transported back in time and experiences firsthand the horrors of the Holocaust and discovers the meaning of her family's heritage.
Action & Adventure DVD Video
DVD Video
- Action & Adventure
- African American Cinema
- Animation
- Anime & Manga
- Art House & International
- Classics
- Comedy
- Cult Movies
- Documentary
- Drama
- Educational
- Fitness & Yoga
- Gay & Lesbian
- Horror
- Kids & Family
- Military & War
- Music Video & Concerts
- Musicals & Performing Arts
- Mystery & Suspense
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Special Interests
- Sports
- Television
- Westerns
Movies most talked about in Life Changing Movies
The Devil's ArithmeticRelease date: 2004-09-21; DVD
Best price: $8.90
Price in other shops:
Miracle at MidnightWATERSTON,SAM; Release date: 2004-03-02; DVD
Best price: $13.46
Price in other shops:
Visual Bible - MatthewRelease date: 2004-08-01; DVD
Best price: $9.99
Price in other shops:
The Passion of the Christ (Definitive Edition)TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENT; Release date: 2007-01-30; DVD
Best price: $10.00
Price in other shops:
The Ultimate GiftTWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENT; Release date: 2007-08-21; DVD
Best price: $10.27
Price in other shops:
Follow The Stars HomeRelease date: 2002-02-26; DVD
Best price: $8.61
Price in other shops:
Silent NightRelease date: 2005-11-08; DVD
Best price: $3.23
Price in other shops:
Saints and SoldiersRelease date: 2005-05-31; DVD
Best price: $9.83
Price in other shops:
Though None Go with MeGAIAM AMERICAS; Release date: 2006-09-05; DVD
Best price: $5.37
Price in other shops:
Love Comes SoftlyHEIGL,KATHERINE; Release date: 2004-09-14; DVD
Best price: $6.46
Price in other shops:
Similar DVD Movies
The Diary of Anne FrankRelease date: 2004-02-03; DVD
Best price: $6.35
Price in other shops:
The Grey ZoneRelease date: 2003-03-18; DVD
Best price: $6.27
Price in other shops:
Paper ClipsHART SHARP VIDEO; Release date: 2006-03-07; DVD
Best price: $10.75
Price in other shops:
A Day in OctoberTango Entertainment, Inc; Release date: 2006-06-27; DVD
Best price: $7.99
Price in other shops:
The Devil's Arithmetic: A Unit Plan (Litplans on CD)by Janine H. Sherman
Teachers Pet Pubns Inc; Published: 2000-08-01; CD-ROM; Book
Best price: $19.95
Lena: My 100 ChildrenRelease date: 2007-04-24; DVD
Best price: $2.85
Price in other shops:
HolocaustPARAMOUNT PICTURES; Release date: 2008-05-27; DVD
Best price: $18.99
Price in other shops:
Out of the AshesRelease date: 2004-04-20; DVD
Best price: $8.37
Price in other shops:
The Devil's Arithmetic (Puffin Modern Classics)by Jane Yolen
Puffin; Published: 2004-04-12; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.98
Price in other shops:
Anne Frank - The Whole StoryTAYLOR-GORDON,HANNA; Release date: 2001-08-28; DVD
Best price: $5.53
Price in other shops: