Animation
Blood of Zeus
Creativity abounds here, but those artistic measures can’t blur the obvious issues that families are sure to discover.
Go quickly. Be silent. And whatever you do, do not show fear.
Miep Gies tells this to Margot Frank on July 6th, 1942, as she helps her to cross a Nazi checkpoint without proper identification. Breath held and smiles wide, they both make it to the house undeterred and Miep ushers Margot into hiding. The beginning of a new, confined life.
Miep could have never imagined a time like this.
As a child living in Vienna, Miep was deathly ill. Her mother, who was very poor, sent her to Amsterdam to be adopted into a Dutch family so that she might have food, medicine and a brighter future. Although she was unwilling, she went. And over the years, she pushed through, healed and taught herself to fit in as best as she could.
As she got older, Miep received the “better life” her mother hoped for. A life full of friends, family and carefree living. But her easygoing days came to an end when her parents told her to get a job and financially provide for herself. After all, this is what grown women do.
So, she did. She landed a job, with no real experience, as a secretary working for the Jewish, business savvy, Otto Frank. Soon afterward, she met a handsome, intelligent Dutchman named Jan Gies and the two got married.
Life was blissful, even though rumors of war hung in the air like a wet blanket. Certainly, Hitler’s Nazi regime would never make it to Amsterdam.
But it did.
Now, it’s 1942 and the life that Miep once knew has changed overnight. No more drinking or dancing or sauntering around the house with her husband. Miep’s existence is filled with one thing– her vow to keep Otto Frank and his Jewish family alive.
After all, Miep was given a second chance as a child. And now, the least she can do is live a life worthy of her mother’s sacrifice.
National Geographic has stepped back in time to World War II with the historical drama A Small Light.
This series, available to stream on Disney+, is filled with a praiseworthy cast (Liev Schrieber, Bel Powley) who strive to tell a new story. Many books and films have sought to tell the story of young Anne Frank, but National Geographic wants to look at the other side of the story–that of the woman who helped Anne Frank and her family, Miep Gies.
The first episode wastes no time setting the stage as Jews go from living in the open to existing only in hiding. So far, there hasn’t been any violence on screen, but we have heard plenty of conversations about death, murder and the horrors of German concentration camps. We also hear light profanity and see some on-screen romance between Miep and her husband, Jan.
And (perhaps since this is being housed with Disney) the first episode includes a conversation between Miep and her adopted brother, who is gay. (Historically, there’s no evidence to suggest that any of Miep’s real-life adopted brothers was.) There is also a message at the very beginning, before Miep marries, where she tells her friends that she believes marriage is enslavement.
Other than those two mentions, the show really is engaging and, hopefully, will continue to be so without any more potentially deal-ending issues. This is rated TV-14, so it’s not a show for the entire family, but hopefully it is a show that some can watch as they learn about a different side of history.
Miep Gies finds a job as the secretary of Jewish man, Otto Frank, and her new job changes her life forever–in more ways than one.
Miep’s adopted brothers burp and fart. Miep’s adopted parents suggest that she get married and that if she can’t find anyone to marry, she should marry her adopted brother, Cas. Miep refuses and begins to make a plan for her life with Cas’ help. Also, Cas tells Miep that she’s not his type because he is gay.
Before getting married to her husband, Jan, Miep tells her friends that she believes marriage is enslavement. Jan shares with Miep that he was married at 18, but years later separated from his wife and neither of them could afford the papers for an official divorce. Miep and Jan kiss and Miep jokes that they’re breaking the law, as this may be considered infidelity. Some time later, Miep and Jan get married. Jan and Miep kiss, make out and have sex (this is insinuated and we only see a shirtless Jan and Miep in a nightdress).
Miep tells Otto Frank that she is adopted and that her mother sent her to live with a Dutch family, who adopted her, because they had money and the ability to buy her medicine, as she was deathly ill.
Miep calls Hitler a narcissist and says that he is no more than a child trapped in a man’s body. Miep doesn’t believe that Hitler will make it to Amsterdam, but she later apologizes to Otto Frank and his family for her naivete.
Miep’s friend, Tess, carelessly tells Miep that a Jewish business owner assaulted a Nazi officer and was dragged out into the street and shot on the spot. Otto’s wife panics when she finds her daughter, Margot, is supposed to be shipped to a German work camp, but she tells her husband, in front of the children, that it’s a death camp.
Miep and other friends drink hard liquor, talk about getting drunk and go dancing. A man urinates on a wall while Miep and Jan talk (we don’t see anything but we do hear him).
We hear the word “a–” once, as well as the phrases “shut up,” “go s— in the ocean” and “oh my god.”
Kristin Smith joined the Plugged In team in 2017. Formerly a Spanish and English teacher, Kristin loves reading literature and eating authentic Mexican tacos. She and her husband, Eddy, love raising their children Judah and Selah. Kristin also has a deep affection for coffee, music, her dog (Cali) and cat (Aslan).
Creativity abounds here, but those artistic measures can’t blur the obvious issues that families are sure to discover.
Ireland is frequently listed as one of the safest countries in the world. But the same cannot be said for the Irish Bodkin.
Dark Matter reminds us that our choices define us. They make us who they are. But this show makes some poor choices itself.
Take the veil off this Hulu show, and you’ll find more than just a compelling story: You’ll uncover scads of problematic content.
