Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Tinsel

Home
Religious Music & Entertainment
Review: ‘Nicky’s Family’ Tells True Story of “Britain’s Schindler”

Review: ‘Nicky’s Family’ Tells True Story of “Britain’s Schindler”

Last updated on: July 7, 2013 at 11:45 pm by Kenneth R. Morefield

Review: ‘Nicky’s Family’ Tells True Story of “Britain’s Schindler” 2013-07-07T23:45:00-06:00 Kenneth R. Morefield

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

British mother choosing adoptive child in Winton’s office.

Imagine you are twenty-nine years old, preparing to go on a skiing vacation in Switzerland with your friend. At the last minute, he calls to cancel, asking you instead to accompany him to Czechoslovakia to visit camps where refugees are fleeing a brutal dictator annexing parts of their country. Your friend is part of a commission trying to help adult refugees to flee, but when you get there you see that there is no one working to help the children of these camps. Parents ask for your help, some finding the hotel where you are staying at and pleading with you to do something. It is 1939. The dictator’s name is Adolf Hitler. Most of the world, including representatives of your government, believe he will be appeased by having been granted the Sudenten borderlands. You disagree, in part because you visited Germany six years earlier and witnessed persecution of Jews. You believe the lives of the children in the Czech refugee camps are in danger, and the clock is ticking. What would you do? What could you do?

Nicky’s Family tells the true story of Nicholas Winton, a man who found himself in just such a position. Winton wrote letters, coordinated with charities, arranged visas, and eventually managed to arrange for transport of nearly seven hundred children out of Czechoslovakia. The film states that Britain’s was the only government that agreed to allow the children entry, and only if Winton could find a custodial family for each child and provide a guarantor of fifty pounds per child. The final train of refugees Winton arranged transport for was stopped because of the outbreak of World War II. No longer able to directly aid the children of the camps in Czechoslovakia, Winton contributed to the war effort first as a part of the Red Cross and later as a member of the Royal Air Force.

Amazingly, after the war was over, Winton’s story was almost forgotten. Few of the children knew even the name of the man who had helped their family, and Winton himself tended to focus on other charities and works. It wasn’t until he (re)discovered a book many years later that had photos he took of the children to advertise for their placement that others asked for permission to see if they could reconstruct a list of the children saved to see how many of them were still living.

If all Nicky’s Family did was retell the story of this amazing humanitarian effort, it would be enough to be inspiring. But the documentary also includes footage of Winton (who is still alive at the age of 104) and the now grown children he saved. Perhaps the most emotional moment in a film suffused with raw emotion comes during a clip from a television special in which Winton is reunited with one of the children, now grown, whom he rescued many years ago. The studio emcee then asks anyone in the audience who directly or indirectly owes his or her life to Winton to stand. What follows is a moment of rare and powerful beauty of the kind that transcends the spectacle of movie special effects.

Young Nicholas Winton with a rescued child.

There were two features of Nicky’s Family that were especially gratifying. The first was the respect and reverence with which the grown children spoke of their own biological parents. Winton is a hero, to be sure, but many of them insist their parents were also heroes for letting them go, giving them up, giving them a chance. The other is the way in which the survivors try to honor Winton not just by praising him but by emulating him, paying forward moments of grace and giving as a way of expanding Winton’s legacy. The children whom Winton helped save have grown up to be academics, members of parliament, scientists, artists, and more. Many have begun their own families and tried to instill in their children a sense of the moral obligation that comes with the recognition of the sacredness and fragility of life. As the film documents their contributions to society, I was struck by the ways in which time can magnify our deeds, showing us the larger consequences of what we thought were small achievements and the breathtaking scope of the ripples emanating from our best efforts.

Through all the stories echoes Winton’s motto: “If something isn’t blatantly impossible, there must be a way of doing it.”

Nicky’s Family opens July 19th in select theaters in New York and Los Angeles. For additional screening dates and locations, consult Menemsha Films.

Ken is the editor of 1More Film Blog and a frequent contributor to Christianity Today Movies & TV. He is guest posting on this blog.

Previous Post

June 27, 2013

Interview: Ronald Maxwell Details His New Civil War Movie 'Copperhead'

Next Post

July 16, 2013 Fun! Film Contest for Jonathan Ryan's Book '3 Gates of the Dead'

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Becky's Picks Children's Movies DVD releases Entertainment News Faith on Film Featured Hunger Games In Theaters Interviews Life, Etc. Mixed Nuts Movie Reviews Poliflix Scroogewatch slider Television Uncategorized

Select a Month December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 April 2011 March 2011

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What did God command Job to do after his friends were rebuked?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Pray for his friends Go to Uz Offer more sacrifices Fast for 40 days