Guest Blogger: Kaitlyn 1

Set in World War II Germany, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas begins with young Bruno (Asa Butterfield) and his family moving to a new home in the countryside because of his father’s new job. Upon arrival, Bruno sees something strange in the back garden – a large farm tended by people that wear striped pajamas. When Bruno tries to get a closer look, he meets a boy called Shmuel (Jack Scanlon), who works on the farm behind a large fence topped with barbed wire. As Bruno and Shmuel become friends, they find that neither of them truly understand what’s going on in the strange “farm.” Told from the point of view of the innocent eight-year-old son of a high ranking Nazi commandant at a concentration camp, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a moving story that helps the devastation of the Holocaust hit home a little harder. Although the two lead roles were children, they were done very well. Butterfield’s character was a very typical child: curious, inventive, and friendly. These traits led him to investigate the mysterious farm and befriend Shmuel. Bruno’s inventiveness showed when he decided to make a swing out of an old tire to combat the boredom of life in the countryside. Scanlon’s character was more complicated, however. Shmuel endured a lot in his time at the concentration camp: hunger, beatings, and difficult work. These struggles made him more pessimistic, but they also made him long for the carefree playtime that Bruno provided. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is praised by many critics for the effective way that it tells its story and for the remarkable acting abilities of Butterfield and Scanlon. I agree with these critics, but I recommend that younger children not watch this movie because of its serious themes, such as the death of many people in concentration camps and the harsh conditions these people had to face. All in all, I think that this is a great movie and it’s definitely worth the time taken to watch it as it can help give you a better perspective on the tragedy of the Holocaust.