''Le Grand Akshan'' is a 2003 documentary film by Ron Goldman about a doomed ship's failed voyage to

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine was a British Empire, British geopolitical entity that existed between 1920 and 1948 in the Palestine (region), region of Palestine, and after 1922, under the terms of the League of Nations's Mandate for Palestine. After ...

that happens to uncover shocking family secrets.

Plot

Reading a newspaper article about the search for the wreck of the , a small ship that was torpedoed and sunk carrying Jewish refugees from Axis-allied

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

to Palestine, Goldman is shocked when his grandmother reveals that his great-great-grandfather Luzer was one of the nearly 800 passengers who died that day in the waters of the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

. This once-unspoken family history leads Goldman to dig deeper and further, until he has revealed a narrative that is deeply complex, and says more about his legacy than his ancestors ever hoped to share. At the center of this narrative is Goldman's great-grandfather, Luger's son Grisha, a man whose tenacity earned him the professional nickname, ''Le Grand Akshan'', or “the truly stubborn one.” Goldman once considered his great-grandfather a source of embarrassment because of the corny middle name he inherited from the mysterious “man with the sharp, piercing look” whose picture hung in his grandmother's study. He is shocked to learn the central role that Grisha played in helping his family escape the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. His heroics involved a harrowing series of moves that took him to Romania,

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and, eventually, the young state of

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, where Grisha entered the nascent cinema industry. Goldman became fascinated with his great-grandfather, and the drive to learn more about him fuels Goldman to complete the film.

References

External links

The Jewish Channel's review
Documentary films about Jews and Judaism Israeli documentary films Documentary films about historical events 2000s English-language films English-language documentary films {{hist-documentary-film-stub

Plot

See also

References

External links