The Search
The Search

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- 78/100 based on 4,651 votes

A silent nine-year-old Czech boy, a survivor of Auschwitz, flees a refugee center in postwar Germany and is found by an American G.I. At the same time, the boy's mother, the sole surviving member of his family, searches refugee centers for her son. Time, distance, and the massive numbers of refugee children are factors hampering the reunion of mother and son.... (Full plot summary below)

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Full Plot Details

A silent nine-year-old Czech boy, a survivor of Auschwitz, flees a refugee center in postwar Germany and is found by an American G.I. At the same time, the boy's mother, the sole surviving member of his family, searches refugee centers for her son. Time, distance, and the massive numbers of refugee children are factors hampering the reunion of mother and son.

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Movie Reviews

Time Out - 10/10 by Trevor JohnstonAlthough there's a slight suspicion that (as in Rossellini's work from this period) the plight of children is being used as a sort of emotional shorthand, the integrity and moving effect of this piece is never really in doubt.
Ozus' World Movie Reviews - 9/10 by Dennis SchwartzA moving wartime drama about orphaned children that's directed in a simple semi-documentary style.
EmanuelLevy.Com - 8/10 by Emanuel LevyFeaturing the striking debut of Montgomery Clift, The Search, a quasi-documentary story of a sympathetic American soldier who rescues a Czech boy-refugee in post WWII Germany, also established Fred Zinnemann's reputation as a an A director.
Nick's Flick Picks - 6/10 by Nick DavisBoth a well-modulated immersion in the experience of stunned and stranded children and a time-capsule of the scarred land and crumbled cityscapes of Germany after the war.
User Review - 10/10 by Elise SKarel Malik is Czech boy who has survived the holocaust. He is all alone and runs away from a refugee center. He meets an American G.I., who befriends him. What he doesn't know is that his mother is also still alive, searching all over Europe to find him. I'm surprised The Search isn't more famous, for I find it one of the best films about post-WWI Germany I've ever seen. Ivan Jandl, who plays Karel, a boy that almost never talks and has forgotten everything about his life except the concentratiancamps he was in after he was separated from his mother, gives a performance I've never seen a child give. So young of age, and then such strong acting! Montgomery Clift is also terrific, as the person who puts back his faith in human kind. Definitely worth a watch, but you may have a hard time finding it; I guess that if it hadn't been for the Belgium television (they broadcasted it), I wouldn't have known about this jewel for quite a while.
User Review - 10/10 by Liam U"What'd Steve tell ya that was?" -"The tomato."
User Review - 10/10 by Ben SPowerful film directed by Fred Zinnemann. It takes place just after WWII is over and the children of concentration camps are being helped and given shelter. One boy runs away and befriends soldier Montgomery Clift (in one of his first roles). Very well made, I really loved this. The opening scenes with the kids was tough but great. And it's really cool that Ivan Jandi, the little boy, got a special Oscar for his performance, he really did a great job. It's a good film about determination and never losing hope. Check this one out if you haven't seen it.
User Review - 10/10 by Daniel Dwow! how amazingly wonderful. really truly, a beautiful and spectacular film, in every sense of the word.
User Review - 10/10 by Private UThis is an excellent movie with Montgomery Clift. Great actor and great story. Good luck finding it though.
User Review - 10/10 by Jordan SMontgomery clift is my favorite old movie actor. This film is a hidden Gem. Very good story.

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