Product Description

Based on a true story, this is the compelling tale of a simple Jewish man who leaves his humble village to become a mythical strongman in Berlin.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #61964 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2003-06-03
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 133 minutes

Amazon.com
Only Werner Herzog could turn the factual story of Invincible into a timeless allegorical fable. This is unmistakably a Herzog film--the director's first narrative feature in a decade--exposing evil in the stage show hosted by the cynical occultist Hanussen (Tim Roth), whose Berlin nightclub entertains Nazi officers on the eve of Hitler's rise to power. This arena of pre-Holocaust amusement is ill-prepared for the disruptive influence of Zishe (Jouko Ahola), a burly Polish blacksmith recruited to play a strongman in Hanussen's act. When Zishe announces his Jewishness to the crowd, thus attracting a Jewish audience to Hanussen's Aryan enclave, his simple act of bravery represents a pivotal affront to Nazi pride, with entirely unexpected results. Finnish body-builder Ahola is Herzog's daring experiment--a nonactor (and it shows) whose likable nature is starkly contrasted with Roth's manipulative malevolence. As Zishe so innocently demonstrates, resistance may be hazardous, but it's not always futile. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

Where are the oscars?
Now someone tell me...Why does this film get lost between the cracks and movies like The Pianist and Schindler's List don't? For me this movie touched upon issues I have never seen in a movie about this era. Everyone should view this film. It is a beautiful well made fable with terrific acting, cinematography and a heartbreaking score by Hans Zimmer. One of Herzog's best and most accessible films.

Slow, Odd, but Interesting True Story of Nazi-Era Germany.
Zishe Breitbart (Jouko Ahola) is a Jewish blacksmith in a rural Polish village in 1932 when he successfully challenges the Strongman in a visiting circus. A talent agent in the audience proposes that the young man travel to Berlin where there are greater and more profitable audiences for a man of his talents. Once in Berlin, Zishe is employed by Haussen (Tim Roth), an occultist who owns a popular theater specializing in spectacle. Mr. Haussen understands his audience well and strives to show them what they want to see, which at that time was a salve for German egos bruised by World War I and fodder for German egos looking forward to renewed greatness under the rising Nazi tide. Haussen is pleased to add Zishe to his show, but insists that he "Aryanize" himself in order to please and not offend the customers. So Zishe puts on a blond wig and takes on the stage persona of "Siegfried The Iron King", and the audience adores him.

"Invincible" is a true story, written and directed for the screen by Werner Herzog. The story is so odd and obscure that I am not tempted to question its veracity; no one would make it up. It is also an odd enough tale to overcome the film's length and deliberately slow pace. There are long periods of time where nothing happens in this movie. Unless you are fascinated by occultist dinner theater in prewar Germany -which is somewhat cheesy by today's standards- the long stretches where the story just plateaus are likely to wear on your nerves. On the other hand, it is interesting to observe the particulars of these shows and of their audience. They provide some insight into the collective self-image in Germany between wars and how political extremists were able to exploit that to advance their own agendas. The performances in "Invincible" are all impressive. Tim Roth probably doesn't have the screen presence to be a movie star, but he is one of the best character actors in cinema today, and he does some fine work here. I don't know if Jouko Ahola is known at all in Europe, but he embodies this simple but self-possessed Zishe well. Young Jacob Wein also does as nice job as Zishe's younger brother. I recommend "Invincible" if you don't mind slow movies. It's an obscure little story, but it is pretty interesting upon close examination.

Well-made, at times slow
Invincible is the story of a Jewish blacksmith in Poland who is so strong he is invited to Berlin to participate in an occultist's show. Since this is 1932 Germany, the idea of a Samson-like Jew is unappealing to those in power, so he adopts the identity of an Aryan gladiator. Eventually, however, he comes to terms with his identity and poses a challenge to his boss.

This boss, the occultist played by Tim Roth (the only "name" in the movie) is a supposed clairvoyant out to become Hitler's minister of the occult. It is a role of rich villainy, one that works well with Roth.

Since this movie deals with Jews in 1930s Poland and Germany, it is hardly a feel-good flick, although the movie takes place prior to Hitler's chancellorship, when Nazi anti-semitism was still years from its violent peak. Nonetheless, the spectre of the Holocaust looms over everything.

Although the movie has a lot to recommend it, it is not very well-paced and every time you think it's about over, it goes on. After a while, you begin to feel the length of the film. Nonetheless, this is a good film and worth watching.