Palestine

Agreed. She came across as very pretentious (thought not at first), but then righteous and she wanted to be right about her beliefs and being a victim, although she kept saying "survivor". When she tells the Palestinians, "I don't want to hear your story 8 or 9 times. I've heard your story", I cringed. I've heard the Holocaust story too. We all have.

Her take on forgiveness was great, but then the righteousness came back.

Yes, the Jews were the only victims of WWII. No Italians were slaughtered, no Polish people, Czechs, etc. When the Red Army invaded and "liberated" Germany, an estimated 2 million German women were raped. But no one else's pain matters, especially not the people in Palestine.

And no, I'm not Jewish or from the Middle East.


"Leave the gun. Take the canolis."

I thought this was a very intriguing part of the film for a couple of reasons:

1) Eva went. I mean, she was invited, she was concerned, and she showed up...and tried to listen.

2) Eva was honest. She was who she was, and she spoke what she felt, even if those in the room (or watching) disagree. It's easy to sit in a comfy couch and criticize someone who is actually showing up.

3) Eva stayed. Her discomfort was palpable...her raised eyebrows, frustration, and occasional eye-rolls were cringe-worthy...and yet she did not walk out. She listened.

4) The story of her struggle with forgiveness is ongoing. She tries to find a reasonable ground...for her it's because "bullets are still flying" but you could see her really listening and studying the other Jewish peacemaker. She want's to understand, even as she finds herself uncomfortable and maybe even repulsed.

5) To see how easy a "victim" can become an "oppressor" is an interesting, wise, and brave choice by the film maker. This must have been done on purpose. They could have cut it out, Eva could have insisted it be removed, or not done it at all, to save face--but they left it in. This begins to tell a broader story about the human condition: that we are all capable of being monsters or angels.

For all these reasons and more, I appreciated the courage of the film makers, the crew, and the people involved on both sides of the table to try to listen to each other. What a great example to so many of us.

Eva is not asking that anyone else forgive the Nazis like she has. She is simply saying that her personal choice to let go of all of her hate, anger, and rage toward Dr. Mengele and the Nazis in general has freed her. She is telling people that by forgiving your enemy, you are empowering yourself to break free of the memories of what others have done to you.

You seem to expect her to take sides in the Middle East situation. How can she possibly do that? Everyone's focus is too narrow for what she is trying to convey: that to forgive (doesn't have to be Nazis, Dr. Mengele, Germany, Jews, Muslims, whatever) whoever has wronged you is to free yourself from their power over you.