Operation Finale: Movie Review

Some Nazis, seeking refuge after Hitler’s defeat by the Allied Forces in 1945, found it in South America, particularly in Chile, Brazil, and Argentina. One such Holocaust war criminal was Adolf Eichmann.

For 15 years, Eichmann lived under an assumed name, in relative peace with his family. Until one day, when Israeli intelligence received word he was spotted in Buenos Aires. Confirmation of his whereabouts set in motion a daring, almost-impossible mission. To fail would have international consequences. Holocaust survivors and the entire nation of Israel counted on them to help bring the ‘architect of the Final Solution’ to justice. The plan was solid, but an unforeseen turn of events put its success in jeopardy.

MGM’s new post-World War II film, Operation Finale, tells this harrowing, true story.

Starring Sir Ben Kingsley (as Eichmann) and Oscar Isaac (as heroic Israeli agent Peter Malkin), the Chris Weitz-directed film pits these two accomplished actors against each other, ‘Hitler’s deadliest lieutenant’ versus a man whose family was ripped apart by Hitler’s war criminals. Their exchanges are the most intriguing of the film. Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion’s impassioned speech to the agents before their flight to Argentina is another moment of note.

Rated PG-13 for “disturbing thematic content and related violent images, and for some language” (including an f-bomb), Operation Finale is not suitable for children. Real film and reenacted scenes of the Holocaust are shown. "Disturbing" doesn’t come close to the atrocities seen on screen, but it’s important to remember what happened and to teach new generations about this dark time in history.

Does Operation Finale live up to its real-life story? Well, it’s not edge-of-your-seat thrilling, but this ‘mission impossible’ will get you caught up in a daring, world-changing mission till its satisfying end.