''Hanna's War'' is a 1988 film co-written and directed by Menahem Golan. The film is based on ''The Diaries of Hanna Senesh'' and the

biographical novel The biographical novel is a genre of novel which provides a fictional account of a contemporary or historical person's life. Like other forms of biographical fiction, details are often trimmed or reimagined to meet the artistic needs of the fict ...

''A Great Wind Cometh'' by Yoel Palgi. It is a biopic detailing the true story of

Hannah Szenes Hannah Szenes (often anglicized as Hannah Senesh or Chanah Senesh; he, חנה סנש; hu, Szenes Anna; 17 July 19217 November 1944) was a poet and a Special Operations Executive (SOE) member. She was one of 37 Jewish SOE recruits from Mandate ...

Plot

Hannah Senesh was a Hungarian schoolgirl with poetic aspirations. In the face of rising anti-Semitic tensions in Budapest, Hanna leaves her mother Katalin (

Ellen Burstyn Ellen Burstyn (born Edna Rae Gillooly; December 7, 1932) is an American actress. Known for her portrayals of complicated women in dramas, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Em ...

) and family behind to work on a kibbutz in then Palestine. There she is recruited by the British Air Force (RAF) for a dangerous mission: The RAF will train volunteers and parachute them over their native lands if they agree to help downed fliers escape from enemy territory. Realising it could be a suicide mission, Hanna accepts the assignment because she feels her family, still alive in Budapest, may soon be taken to the death camps by the Nazis. During her mission, Hanna is captured by the Nazis and ultimately undergoes a long, torturous interrogation process overseen by Captain Thomas Rosza. Her courage and indomitable will in the face of torture, fear and death will make her an inspiration to the allies and the world.

Principal cast

Production

The film was shot on location in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

and

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...

. Early in development,

Helena Bonham Carter Helena Bonham Carter (born 26 May 1966) is an English actress. Known for her roles in blockbusters and independent films, particularly period dramas, she has received various awards and nominations, including a British Academy Film Award a ...

was cast as Hanna with

Peter Weir Peter Lindsay Weir ( ; born August 21, 1944) is a retired Australian film director. He's known for directing films crossing various genres over forty years with films such as '' Picnic at Hanging Rock'' (1975), ''Gallipoli'' (1981), ''Witness ...

signing on as director. Due to delays in filming, Carter and Weir dropped out.

Critical Reception

The critical reception to the film was mixed. The

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

gave the film a negative review, critiquing

's looks, rather than her performance. Another negative review came from Time Out who said "The bad script is based on a stale polemic, which produces an expensive and self-righteous piece of propaganda."

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

was more positive saying "Menahem Golan’s version, heroes and villains are easily distinguished, characters are respectfully observed and admired, or duly abhorred and discredited, and no time is spent dwelling on psychological niceties." Walter Goodman of

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

praised the supporting performances of

Donald Pleasence Donald Henry Pleasence (; 5 October 1919 – 2 February 1995) was an English actor. He began his career on stage in the West End before transitioning into a screen career, where he played numerous supporting and character roles including RAF ...

and

David Warner David or Dave Warner may refer to: Sports * Dave Warner (strongman) (born 1969), Northern Ireland strongman competitor * David Bruce Warner (born 1970), South African alpine skier * David Warner (cricketer) (born 1986), Australian cricketer Oth ...

, but was critical of Anthony Andrews, "The villains provide what zest there is: Donald Pleasence, doing his nutty number as a sadist with a soft streak (''I love a young girl's fingernails. Yours were so pretty.'') and David Warner as the Uriah Heep of Hungarian Fascists (''This will be the last time you will see one another - and I mean the last time''). Anthony Andrews, playing a tough Scottish officer and gentleman, has the good luck to be eliminated fairly early.

DVD and VHS availability

Although the film has not been released on DVD, the VHS version is available for sale at sites such as

Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential econo ...

References

External links

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Film trailer for ''Hanna's War''
1988 films American biographical films American war films Hungarian biographical films American films based on actual events Films based on biographies Films directed by Menahem Golan Films set in the 1940s Films set in Hungary Films shot in Hungary Films shot in Israel Golan-Globus films Holocaust films Hungarian-language films Films about Jews and Judaism Cultural depictions of David Ben-Gurion Films with screenplays by Stanley Mann American World War II films Films produced by Menahem Golan Films with screenplays by Menahem Golan Films produced by Yoram Globus 1980s English-language films 1980s American films {{bio-film-stub