How Creating Schindler’s List Almost Broke Steven Spielberg

To this day, Schindler's List is a tough sit, featuring some of the most relentlessly brutal sequences in Hollywood cinema. As hard as it can be to watch, it was also an ordeal to make. Spielberg himself found the experience emotionally draining, and actors like Ben Kingsley, Ralph Fiennes, and Liam Neeson found their lives and attitudes transfigured by their brush with Holocaust history. The making of Schindler's List is a tale almost worthy of a movie itself.

To read more about the making of Schindler's List, go here:

#wwii #schindlerslist #weirdhistory

[jerrymcdaniel]

Ralph Fiennes is a great actor. I cannot think of anyone else that could have played that part so masterfully.

[ives]

"Whoever saves one life, saves the world entire."

[alemontreemydearwatson]

No movie will ever leave a scar on my soul like Schindlers List. But I hope we never forget .

[OswaldPHaygood]

Spielberg also said he would watch episodes of Seinfeld after shooting Schindler's List, in order to help him mellow out. Jerry found out about it, and then wrote the Schindler's List episode (Jerry making out during it) as an homage to Spielberg.

(Thanks to Judge Reinhold for that story).

[racheljordan]

Rest in peace to all the lost souls in the Holocaust 🖤🥀🌷

[turdl]

My sweet papa (paternal grandfather) served in Germany and surrounding areas during the second World War. I asked him once if he'd ever seen a concentration camp in person. He said yes and paused a while, then asked me if I'd seen Schindler's List and went on to say it's the most accurate depiction he knows of. Hard? yes. Real and important? Also yes.

[abraham]

Something I really liked about this film that I would like to acknowledge is the use of foreign accents on all the characters. It really maintains that comprehensibility for the primary English speaking viewers without the use of subtitles.

[Sash-Vintage]

I remember watching the movie in 1994 with my girlfriend.
The movie ended, for at least half an hr no moved, no one stood up from their seats, you heard the occasional crying
To this day together with the holocaust TV series it shaped my view of history, values & how I live my life
(Being German)

[bursegsardaukar]

It's sad that Robin Williams can drive despair away from people at their lowest point (Spielberg during the production of Schindler's List and Christoper Reeves who was contemplating suicide after the accident that paralysed him) and yet he couldn't save himself from the despair that haunted him.

[susanmolnar]

The way Spielberg ended this film is absolutely moving. How could someone not get emotional.

[davidlape]

I remember watching it in the theater and sobbing at the very end. Powerful movie. Incredibly sad part of history.

[jpac_]

I saw this movie in the theater when it came out. It is so haunting I haven't watched again since.

[pamelacommons]

Everyone should see this movie at least once 😢

[philipberthiaume]

I was a lifeguard, in the late 80's, early 90's. One of the locations I worked at was a Jewish Y. And I met a few ladies who had the German identity tattoos on their arms. They were all little or young girls who survived the camps of WW2. By the time I met them, they were elderly and their husbands had already passed. These ladies could do whatever they wanted, swim where they wanted, had the complete attention of staff and myself, where I was the manager. I sometimes think of them, and the meaning they brought to my life.

[joannabaparileszczynska]

I was 17 when this movie came out, we were made to watch it with my school. It is without doubt, one of the best movies ever made.

[xtbum]

A film that needs to be watched by all, at least once.

[ingridfong-daley]

Ralph Fiennes also put on a ton of weight for his character's part, showing Goethe's degeneration and slothfulness as time goes on... The commitment to character in this film is exquisite.

[ives]

"There will be generations because of what you did."

[Ashley-vsnu]

Robin pops in at the most random and needed of times for his friends.. miss him

[just_kos]

In an episode of classic Star Trek (Patterns of Force), Jewish actors William Shatner (raised Conservative) and Leonard Nimoy (raised Orthodox) had to dress up in German WWII uniforms. I've always wondered how they each thought about that.

When I saw an article somewhere listing movies that really needed to be seen, but only seen once, my first thought was "Schindler's List." I saw it once, it was very moving and powerful, but I really couldn't bear to watch it again.

Most shocking to me was Ben Kingsley about to beat the crap out of the guy in the bar -- I can just picture that in my head!