In the late 1930s, shortly before the outbreak of the second world war, a young British stockbroker named Nicholas Winton – played here by Johnny Flynn, and in later life by Anthony Hopkins – visited Czechoslovakia, to see with his own eyes the humanitarian crisis and rising panic among the exiled Jewish community in the country. So shocked was he by what he witnessed that, with the help of his indomitable mother, Babette (Helena Bonham Carter), he helped secure the rescue of 669 children, most of them Jewish, a feat for which later became known as “the British Schindler”.
It’s a stirring story, and one it’s impossible to watch without considering Britain’s present-day reluctance when it comes to offering shelter to those most in need of it. Winton, who was eventually knighted for his actions, is undoubtedly a hero worth celebrating. And this solidly workmanlike first feature from James Hawes (best known for TV work including Slow Horses and Snowpiercer) does just that, dutifully hitting all the expected emotional beats and piggybacking on a famous pair of episodes of the TV show That’s Life! from 1988 for a tearjerking crescendo of an ending.
