Netflix War Film Irena’s Vow Leaves Viewers Speechless With Remarkable True Story

A Holocaust drama based on the extraordinary life of Irena Gut Opdyke has found a new audience on Netflix, with viewers describing Irena’s Vow as a powerful and deeply moving watch.

The 2024 film tells the true story of Irena Gut Opdyke, a 19-year-old Polish nurse who risked her life during the Second World War to protect 12 Jewish people from Nazi persecution. The story was previously told in the Broadway play of the same name and was inspired by Opdyke’s memoir, In My Hands: Memories of a Holocaust Rescuer.

The film has recently joined Netflix’s catalogue and has quickly attracted attention from subscribers. At the time of the original report, it had reached fourth place among the platform’s most-watched titles.

A dangerous hiding place inside a Nazi officer’s home

Directed by Louise Archambault, Irena’s Vow stars Sophie Nélisse as Irena Gut, with Dougray Scott portraying German officer Rugmer. The film follows Irena after she is promoted to housekeeper in the home of a powerful Nazi officer.

Her situation changes dramatically when she learns that the Jewish ghetto is about to be liquidated.

Rather than stand by, Irena decides to hide 12 Jewish workers. The place she chooses is extraordinarily dangerous: the basement of the German commandant’s own house.

For the next two years, she uses her intelligence, courage and quick thinking to keep the group concealed until the end of the German occupation. Their survival unfolds against a backdrop of Nazi parties, a blackmail scheme and even the birth of a child.

The film’s story is based on the real-life experiences of Irena Gut Opdyke, whose actions eventually led to her being recognised as a Righteous Among the Nations for helping save Jewish lives during the Holocaust.

Viewers surprised they had never heard the story

Part of the reaction to Irena’s Vow has come from viewers discovering the story for the first time.

Some Netflix users have expressed surprise that they knew little or nothing about Irena Gut Opdyke before watching the film. One viewer who had read her memoir commented that hardly anyone seemed to know her story.

Others said the film stood out from the many war dramas they had previously watched.

One viewer wrote: “I’ve seen a lot of war movies but I’ve never seen one quite like this.”

Another described watching it without knowing anything about the story beforehand, saying they finished the film speechless and had not realised it was based on real events. The viewer compared the experience to Schindler’s List meeting Parasite, while hoping the film would receive more attention.

A different viewer praised the story as powerful and beautiful, saying they had never heard of it before and particularly appreciated that it was based on true events. They also highlighted the performances throughout the film.

Another viewer said knowing the events were real made the experience even more powerful, because it gave greater weight to what the people in the story were actually experiencing.

They described Irena’s Vow as a compelling and emotional film that tells an important story and recommended giving it a watch.

Critics have also responded positively

The response has not been limited to Netflix viewers.

Irena’s Vow currently holds an 86% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes from 36 reviews, alongside an 83% audience score from more than 50 ratings. The film has also received reviews noting the strength of Sophie Nélisse’s performance and the value of bringing Irena Gut Opdyke’s story to a wider audience.

The film was released theatrically in 2024, following its selection for TIFF 2023, and runs for around two hours. Its cast includes Sophie Nélisse, Dougray Scott and Andrzej Seweryn, with Louise Archambault directing and Dan Gordon writing the screenplay.

Nélisse has previously spoken about why she believed Gut Opdyke’s story was important to tell. Gut Opdyke did not begin publicly discussing her wartime experiences until 1975, and her story had remained relatively little known for decades.

Watch the trailer

The official trailer from Quiver Distribution introduces Sophie Nélisse as Irena Gut and Dougray Scott as Rugmer, setting up the extraordinary risk at the centre of the story.

Irena’s Vow is currently available to stream on Netflix.