We Were the Lucky Ones Is a Heartfelt, Harrowing Story of Survival That Feels Timelier Than Ever
Photo Courtesy of Hulu
Given the general state of, well, almost everything in the world right now, it may seem like a strange time to release an eight-part prestige drama about the Holocaust. But with antisemitism on the rise, multiple countries at war, and a disturbingly widespread lack of empathy toward those suffering from the horrors of both, perhaps there isn’t a better moment for a show like Hulu’s We Were the Lucky Ones, which tackles a very familiar topic and time period in a refreshingly heartrending and powerful new way.
Based on the bestselling novel by Georgia Hunter, We Were the Lucky Ones is a story about World War II, and specifically a story about the persecution of Jews, but one that is very different from many that have come before it. Rightly or wrongly it’s almost a given, nowadays, that shows and movies that touch on the Holocaust do so by way of talking about its most recognizably horrific elements: the camps, the gas chambers, the scores of mass graves. And while those sorts of stories are, and will always be, both important and deeply necessary, We Were the Lucky Ones’ sprawling scope and setting help convey the breadth of not just the war, but the varied experiences of those who lived through it. (There was a lot more to the horrors of the Holocaust than the concentration camps, which is a fact that often gets left out of the history we learn in school, including the fact that some 90% of Poland’s Jews were killed during the war.)
The series is told through the lens of a single Polish family split apart at the start of the war and spread across countries and continents. As they fight to survive and find their way back to one another, they must confront the best and worst of the human experience, from heroism and kindness to horror and betrayal. Yet, in another surprising twist, We Were the Lucky Ones is not nearly as bleak as its subject matter might suggest (though you will likely cry more than once). Instead, it leans into the small, seemingly miraculous moments of community and hope that light up the overhanging darkness, repeatedly reminding viewers that faith, like love, is both a choice and a gift.
The story begins in Radom, Poland in 1939 as the extended Kurc family gathers to celebrate Passover. Sol (Lior Ashkenazi) and Nechuma (Robin Weigert) run a successful business and their home is warm and full of the laughter of their five adult children and their families, despite the growing threat of antisemitism within their city and German aggression on their border. Middle son Addy (Logan Lerman) is home for a visit from Paris to the delight of his parents and siblings Genec (Henry Lloyd-Hughes), Mila (Hadas Yaron), Jakob (Amit Rahav) and Halina (Joey King). It is also an ending, of sorts, although the Kurcs do not know it. A little over a year later, their family will be torn apart, as Germany invades Poland and World War II begins.
What follows is a sprawling story of separation and survival, as various family members are trapped abroad (Addy), sent to serve in the Polish military (Genec, Jacob, Mila’s husband Selim [Michael Aloni], and Halina’s boyfriend Adam [Sam Woolf]), or forced to live under German occupation in Radom (Halina, Mila, and their parents, along with Genec’s new wife Herta). Faced with increasing deprivation and a near-constant threat of violence and even death, the Kurcs must all make a series of heartbreaking and often seemingly impossible choices to stay alive.