15 Movies About the Pianist-Like Nazi Era

The Nazi Germany of Adolf Hitler, who came to power in 1933 and changed the fate of the world, inflicted the most damage on people of Jewish origin. Hitler, who took these people to concentration camps and carried out various experiments there and ended the lives of most of them, carried out one of the biggest genocides in the history of humanity, also known as the holocaust. Countless films have been made today about these difficult times for humanity. The Pianist, one of the most famous of these films, is among the best films in the world.

Today, we will list 15 successful films for those who want to watch the movie The Pianist and watch more movies about the Nazi era. The films on our list can be enjoyed by people who are especially interested in the Nazi period and history.

15 Movies About the Pianist-Like Nazi Era:

• Enemies, A Love Story
• Süskind
• The Zookeeper’s Wife (Garden of Hope)
• Lore
• Defiance
• Son of Saul (Son of Saul)
• The Diary of Anne Frank
• The Book Thief
• The Reader
• The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
• The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler
• Europa Europa
• Au revoir les enfants (Goodbye Kids)
• Life Is Beautiful
• Schindler’s List

We see deep traces of experiences: Enemies, A Love Story (Enemies: A Love Triangle)

Release date: 13 December 1989
IMDb rating: 6.6
Rotten Tomatoes score: 85%

We are watching the story of Herman Broder, who managed to survive the Holocaust, not with a typical Holocaust movie. Broder, who moved to New York and found himself in a love square, is the person he was married to at the time; A Polish maid who hid herself during the war and her Polish first wife, whom she thought died in a concentration camp… Herman, who is condemned to live in the shadow of the nightmares caused by the Holocaust, feels the relief and guilt that comes with being saved at every moment.

The struggle of not having children in concentration camps: Süskind

Release date: January 19, 2012
IMDb rating: 6.9
Rotten Tomatoes score: —

In Nazi-occupied Amsterdam, a man named Walter Süskind prevents hundreds of children from being sent to concentration camps.

A true story of hope: The Zookeeper’s Wife

Release date: March 7, 2017
IMDb rating: 7.0
Rotten Tomatoes score: 64%

This film tells the story of hundreds of Jews rescued by the director of the Warsaw Zoo and his wife during the Nazi occupation of Poland. In the film, based on a true event, we watch how the self-sacrificing couple hides the Jews in the tunnels and cages of the zoo, at the expense of their own lives.

A brainwashed person’s journey to purge their hatred: Lore

Release date: 16 August 2013
IMDb rating: 7.1
Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%

After her Nazi parents are imprisoned, a girl named Lore is forced to transport her younger sisters through war-torn Germany. Jewish immigrant Thomas, whom he encounters in this chaos environment, forces him to trust someone who has been taught to hate since he opened his eyes…

Jewish community struggling to survive against the Nazis: Defiance

Release date: 31 December 2008
IMDb rating: 7.2
Rotten Tomatoes score: 58%

In Belarus, the parents of the Bielski brothers are killed by the Nazi security forces. Fleeing into the forest, the four brothers swear revenge. Collaborating with other Jews hiding in the forest, the brothers form a community and try to survive while escaping the German police. The lives of approximately 1200 Jews are saved in this film, which is based on real events, in which we watch the losses suffered by the brothers who spent their years in all kinds of difficulties and fear of being caught.

Heartbreakingly brutal: Son of Saul (The Son of Saul)

Release date: May 15, 2015
IMDb rating: 7.5
Rotten Tomatoes score: 96%

Saul, who is tasked with taking prisoners from a Hungarian-Jewish concentration camp to the gas chambers and cleaning up afterwards, sees a Nazi doctor trying to strangle a still-living boy who came out of the gas chamber. Believing that the child is his own, Saul decides to organize a funeral as it should be. We follow the gripping story of despair as he tries his best to protect the lifeless body of the unfortunate child.

From the diary of a small part: The Diary of Anne Frank

Release date: March 18, 1959
IMDb rating: 7.4
Rotten Tomatoes score: 79%

One of the best-known victims of the Holocaust, Anne Frank is best known for her detailed diaries that she kept during the 761 days she spent in hiding. Based on Anne Frank’s diary, this movie is considered the most realistic film adaptation of the diaries of the unfortunate girl who died at the age of 16.

Finding peace with books: The Book Thief

Release date: 7 February 2014
IMDb rating: 7.5
Rotten Tomatoes score: 48%

Trapped by the horrors of World War II in Germany, young Liesel finds peace in stealing books and sharing them with others. His step-parents are also protecting a Jewish refugee in the basement of their house.

A compelling story in the bewilderment of experiences: The Reader

Release date: April 10, 2009
IMDb rating: 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes score: 63%

Michael, a law student, deals with the trial of female Nazi guardsmen. He is very surprised to see that one of the women on trial is his ex-girlfriend. During their time together, Hanna often asked Michael to read to her. Noticing a detail that could help Hanna during the trial, Michael chooses to remain silent. In the movie, we watch the weaknesses of human beings, what people need to do to survive and the effects of lack of education.

It’s not easy not to cry at the end: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Release date: 28 August 2008
IMDb rating: 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes score: 64%

Moving with his family from their home in Berlin to a house in Poland, little Bruno befriends Shmuel, who lives in a place where everyone wears striped pajamas. This unexpected and forbidden friendship develops with Shmuel on the other side of the camp, with unexpected and frightening consequences.

We understand the value of human life: The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler

Release date: April 19, 2009
IMDb rating: 7.2
Rotten Tomatoes score: —

This movie is about the real life story of activist Irena Sendler, who was arrested by the Nazis for saving the lives of nearly 2,500 Jews during World War II. If you like movies like The Pianist, the story of good-hearted Irena, who grew up empathizing with Jews since her childhood, may also interest you.

When you have to act like your enemy in order to live: Europa Europa

Release date: November 14, 1990
IMDb rating: 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%

Separated from his family in the early days of World War II, a Jewish boy pretends to be a German and is accepted into the Nazi world as a “war hero” and eventually joins the Hitler Youth. Although there are details and coincidences in the movie that are too interesting to be true, this movie is based on a real event.

Inadvertently, friendships crumble: Au revoir les enfants (Goodbye Kids)

Release date: January 18, 2007
IMDb rating: 8.0
Rotten Tomatoes score: 97%

Inspired by his own life, the director of the film, Louis Malle, created a production that was influenced by a friendship that ended horribly. Julien, who is studying at a boarding school in France in 1943, does not like Jean, who is new to the school, but over time they become good friends. In time, Julien learns Jean’s secret: Jean is one of the few children who is helped to hide from the Nazi police. We watch the events that develop when Julien unintentionally betrays his dear friend and the disintegration of a beautiful friendship. In the final scene of the movie, we hear the voice of director Malle himself: “More than 40 years have passed, but I will think about that morning until I die…”

We saw what a father can do for his child: Life Is Beautiful

Release date: February 26, 1999
IMDb rating: 8.6
Rotten Tomatoes score: 80%

Perhaps the most popular of the movies on our list is Life Is Beautiful. An immaculate love story that begins between Italian Jews Guido and Dora turns into a nightmare when the couple and their children are sent to a concentration camp. Love to those who can hold back their tears in this movie where Guido tries to protect his son from the gravity of the situation and the separation with his mother with various games and jokes.

One of the best movies in the world with music, red and scenes: Schindler’s List

Release date: March 4, 1994
IMDb rating: 8.9
Rotten Tomatoes score: 98%

One of Steven Spielberg’s masterpieces, Schindler’s List is the story of how a man who became the savior of hundreds of Jews overcame his human weaknesses. Oskar Schindler, a man with a greed for money, is a Nazi supporter who turns a blind eye to what is done to the Jews. However, when he sees the little girl in the red coat that he sees one day among the dead, he cannot erase this picture from his memory. Starting to employ Jews in his factories, Schindler is known for actually saving the lives of as many as 1,200 Jews.

Source: Best Similar, Taste Dive, Goldderby