"The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler" (2009)is a true story well worth its time to see. In my 72 years of existence on this Earth, I know of no one with more fortitude, bravery, and compassion than Irena Sendler had when she smuggled 2,500 babies out of the Jewish Ghetto in Germany during World War II. Today, a movie will soon be released telling her story. Also, Irena is in the lineup to be nominated posthumously for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Very watchable biopic portraying the true life story of Irena Sendler. Although obviously not made on the same budget as Schindler's List, it is still an amazing story of a truly courageous Polish woman. The acting is good overall and excellent by Anna Paquin as the lead. It is another example of how individual people walk into danger, when most people would hide away. If you Google "Life in a Jar" you will get more information on Irena Sendler's amazing life and how her story finally came into the public consciousness in 1999. Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. Recognized by Yad Vashem in 1965 and supported from the Jewish Foundation for the Righteous in New York City. A very life affirming story.

I came upon this movie by accident .. it was on TV late one night .. I did not see it from the start so did not know who was to be hero and who the villain ... but as the film progressed the heroism of Irena became apparent , and incredible what she would do to help children who were strangers to her.... It was amazing too and heartbreaking at the same time to see what a difficult choice those Jewish parents had to make . Knowing the only way their children could survive was for them to give up everything these parent held dear .. the language , their religion , the whole sense of themselves .. The previous reviewer said he did not think it as good as Schinder's list . this I found offensive , and thought he had not "got' the film as I had .. Terrible things happened during WW2 lots of them .. some we know about, and some we do not, and may never .. but it is not a competition ! This film told a tale which was new to me and I was very pleased to have turned the TV on late that night ..

I found this movie a worthwhile watch. Over the years I've done a fair bit of reading about the Second World War, Nazi Germany and the Holocaust - but until now I've never heard of Irena Spendler. Her story is worth knowing, and is reasonably portrayed (albeit in a kind of bare bones fashion) by this made for TV movie. Anna Paquin put on a solid performance in the title role. Irena was a Polish social worker in Nazi- occupied Warsaw who worked in the Jewish Ghetto, and became determined to save the Jewish children who were there. In the end, by smuggling them out of the Ghetto and placing them with willing Polish families, 2500 children were saved.This lacks the sustained intensity of "Schindler's List." For probably three-quarters of the movie, although the conditions of the Ghetto are portrayed as dreadful, the threat from the Germans seems muted and distant, albeit it ever present. Having said that, the intensity of the movie increases dramatically after Irena is arrested by the Gestapo, and the scenes in which she's tortured are quite unnervingly realistic. A nice touch at the movie's end was a few brief words from the real Irena Spendler, who died in 2008.For those interested in this period of history, this is a worthwhile movie - not the best of the Holocaust-themed movies, but certainly a good one.