War sucks.  Recent events bear out this point.  It does not matter what side you are on, little good comes of armed conflict.  I am sure the argument is already forming in your head, asking what about the defeat of Nazi Germany, or other struggles against aggression.  Yes, in certain cases, war can be justified.  Catholicism says that a legitimate defense is sometimes warranted.  This stance does not preclude other responses to these events.  It is easy enough for me to write this from the comfort of my relatively peaceful home, but martyrdom is an option.  At the same time, doing so does not necessarily mean sacrificing your life, though a willingness to do so comes with the territory.  Either way, everything that I discussed so far is found in today’s film, The Forgotten Battle (2020).

It is September 1944 and The Forgotten Battle is about to begin, figuratively and literally.  There are also many battles currently happening in Europe as the Allies attempt to liberate the continent from the Nazis.  In Holland lies the important port of Antwerp, which is being targeted by the Allies in order to speed up the process of invading Europe.  The problem is that the Germans are not giving up easily, and this is what is being witnessed by Tuentje “Teun” Visser (Susan Radder), a young Dutch woman living on the North Sea coast of the Netherlands.  Up to this point, her father, Dr. Visser (Jan Bijvoet), has kept his family from any real difficulties during the occupation by maintaining a neutral medical practice.  Simply put, he treated friend and foe alike.  Now that the Canadians are closing in on their town, the thought among the citizens is that they will soon be free.  The Nazis have other ideas, and as they reinforce the town in which the Vissers live, Teun’s brother, Dirk Visser (Ronald Kalter), throws a rock through the windshield of a German transport truck.  The stone strikes the driver, causing him to lose control of the vehicle and run over some of his comrades.  Dirk escapes, but now the occupiers are looking for the seventeen-year-old boy they label a terrorist, and begin arresting anyone they find of his age.  Speaking of young male Dutchmen, there are some that are serving in the German army, known as the Wehrmacht.  It is at this point that we shift to the other side of Europe where the Nazis are fighting the Soviets in the East, focusing on Dutch volunteer Marinus van Staveren (Gijs Blom).  After being wounded, Marinus is recovering in a hospital where he meets a disillusioned German officer who had both of his legs amputated.  The superior’s gloomy outlook affects how Marinus comes to view the war, but he accepts a transfer back to his home country.  He is there in time to be a secretary to Colonel Oberst Berghof (Justus von Dohnányi), a leader of the Nazi occupation.  Colonel Berghof had visited Dr. Visser’s home, requesting that Dirk turn himself into the Nazis.  Dr. Visser and Teun go to Colonel Berghof to plead for Dirk’s life, and are given assurances of leniency.  However, as we see through Marinus’ eyes, Dirk is instead tortured into giving up the names of other resistance members.  At the same time, there is some hope that things are about to change for the Dutch.  In England, the Allies are planning Operation Market Garden, a scheme to oust the Germans from the Netherlands.  What we do not see is that the effort fails, but we are shown a group of British soldiers that crash in the vicinity of where the Visser’s live.  Among them is William “Will” Sinclair (Jamie Flatters), an eager paratrooper with a general for a father who does not want to see his son go into combat.  To do so, Will lies to his commanding officer, Lieutenant Tony Turner (Tom Felton), as to the young man’s fitness for service.  Through a series of misadventures, Will ends up as the only survivor from his unit, about to be thrown into combat against entrenched German positions defending the water entry into Antwerp.  Among those defenders is Marinus, and how he gets there involves a number of scenes interspersed with what we witness Will endure.  It revolves around Dirk’s treatment while in custody.  Teun goes to the resistance with the pictures Dirk had taken of German positions, hoping that she can withhold them in exchange for them mounting a rescue attempt.  Before this can happen, the remaining members of the cabal are rounded up by the Nazis.  Marinus had tried to warn Teun about the move, but his actions had been observed and reported to Colonel Berghof.  Meanwhile, having secured a map of the key estuary of which Dirk’s photographs had been taken, she brings this information to her friend Janna’s (Marthe Schneider) bakery, where the resistance meets.  As punishment for passing information to Teun, Marinus is sent first to execute the resistance fighters, then to the front lines.  As for Teun, she is tasked, along with Janna, to try to get the information to the Allies.  Before they can put a boat in the water to cross the river to friendly forces, Janna is shot and Teun is captured.  Before Teun is taken into custody, she pushes the mortally wounded Janna into the stream, who eventually floats to the Canadian side.  They use the map and photographs to sneak around the German defenses and send them into retreat.  Will is part of the surprise attack, and eventually comes face-to-face with a retreating Marinus.  They spare one another, but Marinus is later killed while defending Teun, who had been about to be killed by retreating Nazis.  The final scene is of Teun and Will moving in opposite directions, one to continue fighting and the other to a freer Holland.

It is important to emphasize that the Netherlands are “freer” at the end of The Forgotten Battle, but not completely so.  As the postscript reveals, it will not be until May 1945 when the county is fully liberated.  That struggle is partly why the movie has its title.  When we think about World War II, particularly the European theater, we tend to focus on Allied triumphs.  It is an enticing narrative because of the evil that was the Nazi regime, or fascism more broadly, and defeating it.  As a Christian I can zoom out even further to say that ultimate victory against the powers of darkness is assured, but we can see how tenuous are such feelings of hope in a film like this one.  In the early days of World War II, and even when we see Marinus fighting on the Eastern front, it seemed like the Nazis were unstoppable.  Then, Marinus learns from the double amputee officer about the murdering of Jews, which goes beyond the pale of what he thinks is the purpose of Nazism.  He thought detaining people of Jewish extraction to be about saving Europe from their supposedly dastardly schemes.  Sadly, there are some today who think along these same lines, even in the United States, but we will leave off that discussion.  For Marinus, his realization can be seen in terms of John 8:32, “. . . you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  It might not seem this way as it is a gradual process for him, and undoing indoctrination is never easy.  In a similar vein, evangelization takes time.  Understanding that people, especially leaders, can let you down is difficult.  It is even harder when it is for an awful cause.

There is a lot that is awful about The Forgotten Battle, but not in the sense that it is a bad movie.  It has some great production value, which makes sense as it is one of the most expensive Dutch films ever produced.  That is something to keep in mind if you consider watching it.  So, too, is the violence.  Many major characters die, which is never easy.  In total, it is hard but powerful watch.