THE SURVIVOR

Based upon the life of Harry Haft, Ben Foster stars as the boxing Auschwitz survivor. Haft was taught how to box to the death by SS guard Dietrich Schneider, for the amusement of the guards. The winner kept their life while the loser had a bullet put through his head. The film is a character study into the traumas of war and PTSD and it's incredibly untenable what the survivors not only had to endure during the war in order to survive, but also the daily nightmares they experienced afterwards. Ben Foster has always been an underrated actor in my opinion, who turns in a passable performance as Haft, who sometimes comes off as gruff, but it's understandable with the knowledge of what he's lived through. He survives the camp to find his one true love in Leah (Dar Zuzovsky). After the war, he desperately seeks any information as to her whereabouts and even calls out soon-to-be heavyweight champion of the world Rocky Marciano (Anthony Molinari) in a desperate attempt to garner attention to his name in hopes she'll read about it. During this time he somewhat befriends/berates Miriam Wofsoniker (Vicky Kriep) who assists him with finding Leah. Years later with an empty feeling inside of him that Leah is dead, much like his family, Harry settles down and starts a family with Miriam. The subject matter is contagious for those with an infinity towards history, as a boxer who learned to fight for his life within the confines of the Auschwitz death camp, who then turns professional in the States and has the opportunity to fight Rocky Marciano. Foster comes off as a damaged man, detached much of the time but also recalls many of the horrors he's survived easily. The trauma the man has endured can never fully be appreciated and the last 15 minutes of the film will rip at your heartstrings. Seeing individuals like this pick up the pieces of their life and move on, only reinforces how trivial the problems we have in modern society today. 5.5/10