A Reminder That Goodness Survived

Read Time:5 Minute, 53 Second

MOVIE REVIEWS
This Ordinary Thing
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Genre: Documentary, History
Year Released: 2025, 2026
Runtime: 1h 2m
Director(s): Nick Davis
Where to Watch: a VOD Release to follow nationwide in the US and Canada on March 31, 2026

RAVING REVIEW: History tends to remember the villains. Their cruelty becomes the defining image of an era, their actions etched into textbooks and the collective memory. But history is rarely made by monsters alone. Sometimes it’s shaped with a whisper, in kitchens and basements, by ordinary people who decide that cruelty will not be the final word. THIS ORDINARY THING exists to remind us of those people.

Nick Davis’ documentary explores the stories of non-Jews across Europe who risked everything during the Holocaust to save Jewish lives. These weren’t soldiers or political leaders. They were neighbors, farmers, teachers, and strangers who made the decision, often in a moment, to protect someone targeted for extermination. Many of them hid families in their homes, smuggled children across borders, or forged documents that gave people a chance to survive. None of them believed they were heroes.

That modesty becomes the backbone of the film. The individuals honored throughout the documentary are often referred to as “The Righteous,” people later recognized for rescuing strangers at enormous personal risk. There were more than twenty thousand such individuals recognized at Yad Vashem, each with their own story of courage and defiance. Davis constructs the film around a small handful of those testimonies. The accounts come from archival interviews and historical records, brought to life through an extraordinary ensemble of actors who read from the original transcripts. The roster is almost overwhelming: Helen Mirren, Jeremy Irons, Carrie Coon, Stephen Fry, Ellen Burstyn, Bill Camp, Marcia Gay Harden, and many others lend their voices to these real-life stories.

It’s an unusual approach for a documentary, but it works remarkably well. Instead of recreations or dramatic reenactments, the film allows the words themselves to carry the weight. The actors aren’t performing characters in the traditional sense. They are acting as vessels, channeling the experiences of people who lived through one of the darkest chapters in human history. That restraint becomes one of the film’s greatest strengths. The documentary avoids sensationalism, focusing instead on the bravery embedded within each story. A family opens their home to strangers despite the threat of execution. A farmer smuggles food to people in hiding. These actions seem simple when summarized, yet the stakes behind them were unimaginable. The film repeatedly circles back to a haunting question: What would you have done?

It’s a question that lingers long after the documentary ends. The people featured here didn’t act because they believed they were heroic. In fact, many of them expressed confusion when later honored for their actions. One rescuer reportedly said he didn’t deserve any recognition. The real question, he suggested, was why more people didn’t do the same thing. That idea forms the film's philosophy. Heroism, the documentary suggests, isn’t dramatic. Sometimes it’s a decision made quietly in a moment of crisis. Sometimes it’s choosing compassion when the world demands indifference.

Archival footage grounds the stories in reality while the readings create a bridge between past and present. The result is a documentary that feels reflective rather than purely educational. Instead of presenting history as a distant tragedy, the film invites audiences to engage with the moral choices at its center. The cast’s involvement also adds an unexpected layer of emotional connection. Hearing actors like Jeremy Irons or Helen Mirren deliver these words gives the testimonies a clarity and gravity that helps the stories resonate with modern viewers. The performances never feel theatrical; they remain focused on honoring the people behind the words.

At just over an hour long, THIS ORDINARY THING moves quickly through a wide range of stories. That brevity is both a strength and a limitation. On one hand, the film remains tightly focused, avoiding the kind of sprawl that sometimes weakens historical documentaries. On the other hand, the sheer number of accounts presented means that some stories receive only brief attention before the film moves to the next voice. Even so, the cumulative effect is powerful. Each testimony builds on the last, gradually forming a mosaic of courage scattered across Europe during a time when cruelty dominated the headlines. The film reminds viewers that a single narrative rarely defines history. Even in the darkest periods, there are always individuals pushing back against the tide.

The documentary also feels painfully relevant today. The director himself has spoken about how the project forced him to confront his own relationship with identity and history. He hoped to create a film that highlighted the shared humanity that connects people across cultures and beliefs. That message never feels heavy-handed. Instead, the film presents its stories and allows viewers to draw their own conclusions. The testimonies themselves provide the moral weight. Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of THIS ORDINARY THING is its refusal to frame these individuals as mythical figures. They weren’t extraordinary people with extraordinary abilities. They were ordinary individuals confronted with a choice. And when that choice arrived, they chose humanity.

The Holocaust remains one of the most documented atrocities in human history, yet stories of resistance and compassion often remain overshadowed by the scale of the horror. Davis’ documentary restores some of that balance, shining a light on the individuals who refused to accept hatred as inevitable. The film doesn’t argue that goodness will always prevail. History proves that it often doesn’t. But THIS ORDINARY THING insists that even in the bleakest moments, people are willing to stand against injustice. Sometimes the bravest act is simply refusing to look away.

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