Among the tinsel of fluffy holiday movies are two gems that will take your breath away. Thought-provoking, beautifully crafted and impeccably acted, they bring a couple of momentous events in history down to a very personal level. These are films for which the Academy Awards were invented.

Based on the award-winning book by John Boyne, “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” looks at the Holocaust through the eyes of a young German boy whose father is a Nazi officer. When the family moves near a concentration camp, eight-year-old Bruno is told never to visit the “farm.” His curiosity about the people in the striped pajamas gets the better of him, and he sneaks off, befriending a young Jewish boy sitting on the other side of the fence. The innocence of the two boys – and their ability to simply accept each other as peers – is what gives the film a devastating new perspective on the tragedy. The last five minutes of the movies will be etched in your consciousness forever.

Sean Penn provides another unforgettable image in “Milk,” the once-again timely story of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in the United States. Interspersed with real footage from the ‘70’s, it’s a somber reminder that for every step forward, we take two steps back. The story itself is stirring, but the powerful performances give it a humanity that shows we all
have an inalienable right to love.