Synopsis

In a Nazi-occupied Polish ghetto during World War II, Jakob Heym accidentally overhears news of a Soviet victory. To give his fellow prisoners hope, he claims to own a hidden radio and invents reports of advancing Allied forces. His hopeful lies lift the ghetto's spirits, but they also place Jakob and everyone around him in increasing danger.

Factoids & Trivia

• The film is based on Jurek Becker's 1969 novel *Jakob der Lugner*, which drew on the author's experiences as a Jewish survivor of Nazi persecution.

• The 1999 production is not technically a remake of the 1975 East German film. Both movies are separate adaptations of Becker's novel.

• Filming took place in Budapest, Hungary, as well as Lodz and Piotrkow Trybunalski in Poland. Principal photography ran from October 12 through December 19, 1997.

• The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 16, 1999, before its United States theatrical release on September 24.

• Made on an estimated $45 million budget, the film earned approximately $4.96 million in the United States and Canada.