Movie Review: Everything Is Illuminated

Everything Is Illuminated (4 of 5): This is a nice movie about a young Jewish man, played by Elijah Wood, who goes to the Ukraine to uncover the secrets of his grandfather's past and how he escaped the country and fled to American in World War II. In order to figure things out he enlists the help of a Ukrainian escort business that specializes in helping Jewish families trace their roots throughout the region. What he doesn't know though is that his grandfather's past has crossed paths with the Ukrainian family in ways that they will soon both understand.

Like I said, this is a nice movie. It is entertaining and I was happily surprised to find myself laughing quite frequently throughout. I thought this would be a difficult move to get through because of its anti-semitic/holocaust subject matter, however the film is hardly weighed down by these issues. Instead, it is frequently light-hearted, especially the scenes involving the Ukrainian grandson who loves American pop-culture. This is a poignant, funny and sad movie that provides a very good entertainment experience.