‘The Survivor’ Toronto Film Festival Review: Barry Levinson Directs Ben Foster In Extraordinary Transformation As Auschwitz Prisoner Who Boxes To Stay Alive
The remarkable true story of Harry Haft, is made even more pertinent by the simple fact that his story has not been the subject of a large scale feature film until now. It took a script from a young Australian woman, Justine Juel Gillmer (who also boxes) to generate interest for Oscar winning director Barry Levinson (Rainman, Diner, Bugsy, Wag The Dog, Good Morning Vietnam) whose own memories as a child in an encounter with a Jewish concentration camp survivor helped spark his interest in the tale of Haft, a man who basically boxed to stay alive in Auschwitz during WWII.