Triumph of the Spirit

"Win and he lives to fight again. Lose and his family dies with him."

1989 2h 0m EN

👍

6.5

SOLID

★6.5TMDB · 63

DramaWarHistory

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

During World War II, Salamo Arouch, a passionate boxer, is arrested and sent to a concentration camp. Soon, he is forced to box against his fellow prisoners for the sake of entertainment.

“Win and he lives to fight again. Lose and his family dies with him.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Willem Dafoe
Salamo Arouch
Edward James Olmos
Gypsy
Robert Loggia
Father Arouch
Wendy Gazelle
Allegra
Kelly Wolf
Elena
Costas Mandylor
Avram
Kario Salem
Jacko
Edward Żentara
Janush

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Robert M. Young
Writers: Andrzej Krakowski, Laurence Heath, Shimon Arama
Languages: German, English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

37 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: German, English.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Robert M. Young, shot by Curtis Clark. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Cliff Eidelman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Arthur Coburn shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Willem Dafoe and Edward James Olmos and Robert Loggia carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Win and he lives to fight again. Lose and his family dies with him.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0098513 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Robert M. Young directs. Curtis Clark behind the camera. Cliff Eidelman scores. Arthur Coburn cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in German, English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

137 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Dialogue crosses 2 languages: German, English.
3Directed by Robert M. Young, shot by Curtis Clark. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Cliff Eidelman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Arthur Coburn shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Willem Dafoe and Edward James Olmos and Robert Loggia carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Win and he lives to fight again. Lose and his family dies with him.".
8IMDB entry: tt0098513 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 63 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
10Classified under 8 themes, including "concentration camp", "world war ii", "jew persecution", "auschwitz-birkenau concentration camp".