White Bird

2023

Action / Adventure / Biography / Drama / Family / War

24
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 99% · 49 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 99% · 500 ratings
IMDb Rating 7.4/10 10 8220 8.2K

france nazi holocaust (shoah) world war ii private school bullying

Plot summary

After being expelled from Beecher Prep for his treatment of a classmate with a facial deformity, Julian has struggled to fit in at his new school. To transform his life, Julian's grandmother finally reveals her own story of courage of her youth in Nazi-occupied France, where a classmate shelters her from mortal danger.

Director

Marc Forster Photo
Marc Forster

Top cast

Miroslav Táborský Photo
Miroslav Táborský as Monsieur Lafleur
Helen Mirren Photo
Helen Mirren as Grandmère
Gillian Anderson Photo
Gillian Anderson as Vivienne
Olivia Ross Photo
Olivia Ross as Rose
720p.BluRay 1080p.BluRay 1080p.BluRay 2160p.WEB
1.09 GB
1280*536
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us   fr  
24 fps
2 hr 1 min
Seeds 18
2.24 GB
1920*804
English 5.1
NR
Subtitles us   fr  
24 fps
2 hr 1 min
Seeds 32
2.03 GB
1920*804
English 5.1
NR
Subtitles us   fr  
24 fps
2 hr 1 min
Seeds 15
5.4 GB
3840*2160
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
N/A
Seeds 13

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by stevencsmovies 7 / 10

great leads!

Back in 2017, a movie called WONDER (based on the 2012 book by R. J Palacio) came out, about a disfigured young boy going to public school for the first time. I actually just watched it. I really liked how they showed the story through a few characters' perspectives. Keeping with that trend, a sort-of sequel kind of spinoff has been released called WHITE BIRD (based on the 2019 graphic novel from the same author). Don't worry, you don't have to have seen WONDER to understand what's going on. This is about Julien (Bryse Gheisar), an ex-school bully who is getting a taste of his own medicine at a new preppy school. He gets a visit from his grandmother Sara (Hellen Miren), who tells him a story of her past. In 1942 France, a young Sara (Ariella Glaser) is forced into hiding from the Nazis, taken in by a classmate named Julien (Orlando Schwerdt), who has a lame leg due to polio. Him and his parents (played by Gillian Anderson and Jo Stone-Fewings) hide her in their barn. This is a good movie. The performances of the two leads are great and sparking with chemistry. I was pretty stressed throughout the experience due to the circumstances. It does have an "Anne Frank" vibe, but it's done well here. In dark times, sometimes all we need is kindness and hope. It's a little heavy-handed in some parts, but a very solid film. Remember, kindness can change somebody's life.
Reviewed by u0598008 6 / 10

Some Nice Surprises

This fictional story's levels of hope are continually overpowered by the political terror that much of the world actually encountered in the early 1940s. It's core message, therefore, is more along the lines of good coming from you holding onto virtues in a world where people primarily protect themselves. That makes it similar to faith-based movies, but without the pressures of praying, reading the scriptures, and committing to a religious lifestyle.Written French has subtitles, while the occasionally spoken French word or sentence remains entirely untranslated.Plenty of tense moments. Good acting and flow, but only slightly entertaining.
Reviewed by chand-suhas 7 / 10

To find one's light.

The expelled bully Julian from Wonder (2017) is trying to fit in hard in his new high school and is still struggling. He does feel guilty but doesn't understand why he was made to pay so much. While he is still unsure, his grandma Sara visits him from Paris and shares her life story as a little girl in the Nazi occupied France during the second World War. She shares her nightmare of being ostracized and how she is forced live a life in hiding with the help of Julian and his family. The boy turns out to be her first love as they bond over an year, helping her hide from Nazi army. Her story is the triumph of humanity, love over hate and Sara knows better that it is time to share this story with Julian, fondly named after her Julian. How he became the light of her life when her's was filled with darkness and hopes to instill the same light in Julian to help him out of his predicament.The Wonder reference is limited to Julian as the story is entirely that of Sara in the 1940s. Needless to say, this was an out and out sob fest, unlike Wonder which had it's lighter moments. Having said that, White Bird is still a heart touching tale and a well directed one. The story got me captivated instantly though it travels through familiar tropes and the director gets on with the story immediately without wasting much time with Julian from current time. The world during the Nazi dominance was truly heartbreaking as the people turned against Jews, told through Sara and her parents' pov. The scenes where Sara and Julian test their imagination that knows no bounds, were well executed. Despite the predictability, it is still an all important film even for the current times and the stance it takes against hatred is worth a watch. Helen Mirren as Sara shines in her extended cameo while the performances by the leads just melted my heart.
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