'The Boy in the Striped Pajamas'

By Chuck Colson
Christian Post Guest Columnist
Wed, Nov. 12 2008

Excerpt:
Sometimes conversations falter for lack of a common starting point. That’s why so many conversations may default to discussing the weather and sports. It’s rare that these conversations take us to anything of much weight or substance. But one place where we can still find a starting point for deeper conversations is at the movies.

That’s one reason why I want to encourage you to go see the recently released film, "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas." The film is brilliantly told through the eyes of 8-year-old Bruno, a young German living in Nazi Germany. And while the film is told through the eyes of a child, I must warn you, this film, rated PG-13, is not appropriate for children.

The film begins with the promotion of Bruno’s father, an SS officer whom Bruno clearly adores. The family moves away into the countryside, settling into a large house at the edge of some woods. Being young, innocent, and largely left in the dark, Bruno has no way of making sense out of what he sees one day when he stumbles across a complex of dingy buildings behind an electric fence.

Seeing a little boy about his age behind the wire, Bruno wonders why the boy, Schmuel, is wearing striped pajamas in the middle of the day. Bruno also wonders about the strange place where Schmuel lives, and why its inhabitants look so sickly. the rest image