The Optimist Review – Excellent Performances, Breathtaking Scenery, Engrossing

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Category: Haute This Issue

Published on Tuesday, 10 March 2026 13:58

Written by Janet Walker

The Optimist, from Trafalgar Releasing, presents the true story of Herbert Heller, an Auschwitz survivor who finally, after six decades, was coaxed into telling his story and, through fate, rescued a young girl from the grips of torment.  

The film begins with Mr. Heller, played by Stephen Lang, receiving the news from his physician that he should begin to get his affairs in order. There was no diagnosis, just the general knowledge, that when those words are said, the expectation of death is near. As he is leaving, EMT are rushing past him, a young girl, Abbey, played by Elsie Fisher is being wheeled into the ER.

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With the unexpected news, he decides it is time to tidy up loose ends, and as he is told he is soon dying, he places everything in his store on sale. He also agrees to tell his story, his secret, the one that has haunted him for sixty years, the story of his survival.

As he arrives at the Redwood Recovery center, in Marin County, California, he is greeted by Ruth, played by Robin Weigert, and Abbey, who is now at the recovery center. As Mr. Heller has agreed to tell his story, he is unaware of why Abby is at the center. As they begin, he asks about a scar on her neck, and she is unable to explain, and then he shows her his scar where his Auschwitz prisoner number was tattooed.

Soon, we travel to 1941, to Prague, and we meet a young Herbert, played by Luke David Blumm, his father, played by Slavko Sobin, mother, played by Stella Stocker, and older brother, Hein, played by Oskar Hes.

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The Nazi invasion was in its infancy, the winds of war were swirling, and while others in the Heller's circle of friends could see the future, at least limitedly, Mr. Heller was an optimist, and as an engineer, he understand the needs to building a war machine, that would relocate all the Jews in Czechoslovakia. As they are at a party, Hein explains to Herbert exactly what his father is saying, not to worry, soon the war will pass, everything will be fine.

Months passed and the restrictions imposed by the Nazi became stricter, curfews, the children were no longer able to attend school, and then all Jews were ordered to wear the star of David. Even then, Mr. Heller explained, soon, with each day we are one day closer to the end of this war. Of course, as it turns out, when they finally decided it was time to leave, the Nazi's were removing all the Jews from Prague.

The Heller's were sent to Terezin, a show camp that the Red Cross and other aid organizations could film to show the Jewish prisoners were well fed, receiving medical care, and not mistreated. One day, the Nazi commander explained that all the prisoners were being transferred. Young Herbert's name was not on the list, and he begged the prison commander to send him with his family.

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He explains, in retrospect, he learned on that day why a young boy should not make adult decisions, as those on the list, and now he also, were being sent to Auschwitz. He had begged the commander to send his to one of the most notorious Nazi prison camps. However, as he explains his story, he was fortunate and always managed to find a good job.

Herbert Heller's story is filled with amazing moments of divine grace, when fate, chance, happenstance, kismet, or God, intervened, and a young boy managed to escape what was meant to kill him. And when he was once again, confronted by an expected imminent death, fate again intervenes and his story of survival, of facing the end of the world, becomes the bridge that saves another from what she believes is her only option, as she navigating her own emotional fractures.

Soon, the two, each carrying the burden of survivors guilt. Through their growing connection, Herbert is inspired to finally share his truth, opening a path toward empathy, forgiveness, and renewal. What unfolds is a riveting cinematic experience of rare intimacy and scope: a story anchored in lived history yet soaring with contemporary urgency and hope.

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Throughout the film, we move between two worlds, a contemporary two hander, where Stephen Lang, and Elsie Fisher capture our attention, each giving genuine and convincing performances as emotionally damaged souls, each wearing their grief differently. And the journey of the Heller family, hopeful, desperate, lost. And we empathizes with each, as even the Nazi soldiers captured our attention with their authentic inhumanity.

Director Finn Taylor has captured each time period, the nuances of trauma, where the mind can bury the darkest secrets and a sound, a smell, triggers the intensity of the moment. The cinematography is stunning and the use of the redwood trees, in Northern California, as an analogy of life and the fact that they are still standing, alive surviving even in the starkest seasons of death and despair. 

Engrossing and captivating, The Optimist: The Bravest Act is Truth is not to be missed. An incredible story of resilience and hope and passing the torch of hope, compassion, and understanding to the next generation.

The Optimist: The Bravest Act is Truth opens in select cities on Wednesday, March 11, 2026. It is a must see.

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Country: U.S.

Language: English.

Runtime: 102 minutes.

Release date: Wednesday, March 11, 2026.

Director: Finn Taylor.

Producer: Noah Lang, Dean Lucas, George Rush, Jeanine Thomas.

Executive Producer: Mark Halloran, Debi Memmolo, Todd Slater, Greg Taxin.

Co-Producer: Jeffrey Brown, Jennifer Goshay, Michael Manasseri, David Minkowski, Matthew Stillman, Mirka Taylor.

Writer: Finn Taylor.

Cast: Stephan Lang,Elsie Fisher, Luke David Blumm, Robin Weigert, Slavko Sobin, Stella Stocker, Oskar Hes.

Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade.  A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She has also published "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," and "Days, Times, Seasons, and Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose," which can be purchased here. She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a member of the International Federation of Journalists.