Forgive Us Our Trespasses

source: Forgive Us Our Trespasses

Fair and precise remind of a less familiar aspect of Nazi Germany policy about its citizens. A young woman, teacher. Her son, disabled, is one of her students. One day, the menace against boy. And his survive . At first sight, holes and a too short / concentred story. But the powerful, impressive and pleasant work of young Knox Gibson is the great gift of this short film about childhood in a different light.

I didnt realise this was a short. Should have read the specs. Not that original. Must have happened many times. Its a fast start adn action happens almsot straight away.

This captured a moment of time in history that we should forever remember. When we hear about WW2, we think about Hitler, concentration camps, millions of jews murdered in masses, etc. The suffering of the disabled are equally important and should not be swept under the rug. Their suffering should not be invalidated. Any group discriminated against reside in the same category of suffering of war. This short was well directed, the actors were excellent, and the cinematography was smoothly done. The story was interesting and compellingly. We need more promotions for films like this. Films with educational value.

During or even before the second world war, the Nazi regime targeted people it deemed lesser. With Aryans allegedly and supposedly being superior to others (be it religious beliefs, skin color or simply race). One group that gets almost forgotten, are the physically disabled. Like the protagonist in this short movie. A short movie that is very well done and that shows how cruel and mad people got back then. Tension filled and really tight, I would not be surprised if this wins (or has won by the time you read this) awards. Short and while maybe not so sweet (subject matter), this checks all the "right" boxes. Nothing to forgive here ...

Aktion T4 was a real thing, but it was carried out in secrecy by doctors performing involuntary euthanasia, this short portrays it as if Hitler ordered the army to hunt down their own non-Jew German citizens the same way the SS hunted Jews. If such a thing had really happened, the Nazis would have lost all their popular support. The soldiers are portrayed as blood thirsty lunatics, immediately killing the boy's mother because she didn't open the door within 3 seconds. As if the emotional manipulation and historical inaccuracies weren't enough the ending is an insult to the viewers' intelligence, because we're supposed to believe a disabled boy can overpower and kill a grown up armed soldier (and when he pushes his corpse aside with a smile is just the icing on the cake, lol). It's a shame this short is so bad, because this is a really interesting and little known part of German history.

A very good short film that can make the audience empathize with the main character in 13 minutes. I hope Netflix shows the success it has shown in festivals in the field of short films as well.

Flicking through Netflix can produce mixed results, now and then you stumble across a gem, something that's a little bit different, but rewarding. Forgive us our trespasses is very unusual, a short on Netflix, and not a film with a conventional beginning, middle and end, but just a snapshot of the life of one young boy, during the rise of The Nazis. Beautifully presented, well acted, but an insightful look at how life was for people living with disabilities during that horrific time. Thought provoking. 9/10.

Even if it's a short movie give this a chance. Cause it's based on true events from Nazi time during the Second World War. The boy played his role really well and the idea of this work makes wondering more about all these cruelties. God bless all the children who must die. 8/10.