Director: John Hay
Among the many documentaries about the Holocaust, there are a few that celebrate positive stories of people that defied the Nazi mandate by protecting and hiding Jewish people from the regime. Artist friends Willem Arondeus and Frieda Belinfante are the subject of a new documentary fronted by Stephen Fry about two people living alternative lifestyles in Holland, having to hide their sexuality while seeking to protect others persecuted by a common foe. John Hay’s Willem & Frieda is traditional-style document but one that has a particularly engaging story to share.
Members of the Artists Resistance, Willem and Frieda created fake IDs, convince the manager of the biggest brewery in town, Heineken, to finance them and brought in a well-known printer to help thousands of Jewish people to escape detection. This biographical documentary, screening at BFI Flare, ahead of transmission on Channel 4, briefly explores the experience of the two people before they became part of an active network to divert Nazi activity.
Hay’s film is a fairly straightforward made for television documentary which involves a series of talking heads including relatives, museum directors and historians in conversation with presenter Stephen Fry, as well as archival material, a previously filmed interview with Frieda, photographs and contemporary film footage from Second World War Holland. And of course, Fry visits lots of the key locations, often in the dark, to add that necessary atmosphere. You can almost plot where the ad breaks will go, a series of peaks and troughs with mini-revelations along the way that maintain momentum in this 75-minute film.
This is also a fairly chronological story, a narrative that explains what happened and how the individuals built what eventually became a sabotage network. And the story is an exciting one, filled with heroism, secret activities and people working together for the greater good in a dark time. All of that comes across really well in this documentary which understands the principles of good storytelling for television.
Fry is his usual affable self, engaging with the many people he speaks to and making them feel comfortable on camera. He is suitably fascinated by the revelations he hears as the next part of the story is revealed and expresses sufficient emotion and awe when the consequences are known. Fry even walks mournfully across the countryside contemplating all that he has heard and the nature of heroism in impossible circumstances.
William & Frieda is a celebratory tale of daring and courage that is inspirational in its content, trying to make the case for Willem’s importance in the history of resistance, arguing that his sexuality has meant his contribution has been overlooked. A little more on their life as artists and of Frieda’s role in all of this would have been helpful, fleshing out just why their actions were so extraordinary at a time when many people did nothing at all. But it also raises awareness about the contribution of LGBTQiA+ communities to the war effort while never departing from the standard format for television documentaries.
Willem & Frieda is screening at BFI Flare from 15-26 March.
The Reviews Hub Score:
A tale of daring
