There’s no shortage of holocaust movies out there, but I have to say I have not seen one set primarily as a stage musical set in real-time. That’s the premise of this musical drama by Spanish filmmaker Rodrigo Cortés (Red Lights, Buried), which is inspired by a true story set in Warsaw during the 1942 Nazi occupation. Its prologue tells us that Jews and refugees all over Poland were imprisoned in a Warsaw ghetto, cut off from the outside world, suffering from starvation, extreme cold, and various diseases. Yet somehow, despite the worst human condition, creativity continues to flourish. Against all odds, and a group of Jewish theater actors are putting together a play at Warsaw’s Femina Theatre.

The opening scene follows a young woman Stefcia (Clara Rugaard) trying to make it to that evening show, barely escaping Nazi troops along the way. She gets ready for the play with her fellow actors, including her boyfriend Edmund (Sing Street’s Ferdia Walsh-Peelo). The actors undoubtedly risk their lives in staging the play, bringing beauty and a sense of hope to the people who are deprived of pretty much everything. Another cast member who happens to be Stefcia’s ex, Patryk (Mark Ryder, whom I recognize from the Canal+ Borgia series) suddenly arrives late. Visibly shaken, he offers her a chance to escape with him. One would think that is ‘an offer you can’t refuse’ given the life and death situation of remaining behind, but things aren’t that easy for Stefcia. Yes, she might escape death but it also means abandoning people she holds dear. 

Performing under Nazi occupation is already nerve-wracking enough without having to deal with such a dire predicament, everyone understands the show must go on. The play’s cast includes some recognizable faces, such as Henry Goodman, Jack Roth, and Valentina Bellè (Roth and Bellè were in Netflix’s Medici series) There’s such a stark contrast between the lively musical comedy performed on stage and the grim reality the actors face behind the curtain. One can’t escape the sense of dread in the dilapidated theater even as the audience laugh at the most cheerful moments of the play, but they can only tap their feet in unison as they’re not allowed to clap. 

Despite the harrowing circumstances, I wasn’t as emotionally invested as I’d like given the slight character development. Ryder and Rugaard are quite believable in their roles, but not all the actors are up to par. The constant action during the play gets a bit chaotic at times, while the energy of the film feels uneven. The most intense moment happens in the third act with the arrival of a trigger-happy Nazi sergeant (Magnus Krepper) who terrorizes the entire theater with his ominous speech. 

Cortés wrote the screenplay with David Safier, which is adapted from the Polish play ‘Milosc szuka mieszkania‘ (Love is Looking for an Apartment) by Polish Jew dramatist and songwriter Jerzy Jurandot. He sets out to do something unique by setting the movie in real-time, with dramatic camera work and interesting tracking shots by DP Rafa García. The result is a pretty visually arresting film though not as groundbreaking as it likes to be. Surely it’s an affecting human story about love and survival that’s well-worth telling. What I really enjoy in this movie is the music composed by Victor Reyes with Jurandot’s lyrics. If they ever do a music production of Jurandot’s play, I’d definitely be up for it!

Love Gets A Room is now playing in select theaters in the U.S.

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