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Forgive Us Our Trespasses review – the test of morality in society

Forgive Us Our Trespasses  captures one of the darkest periods of the history of humanity and raises essential questions relatable in the modern day.

This review of the Netflix short film Forgive Us Our Trespasses contains spoilers.

In 1939, Hitler implemented the Aktion T4 program, which led to the murder of 300,000 disabled people while sterilizing an additional 400,000. The victims of this genocide mostly were children. More than half a century later, filmmaker Ashley Eakin tries to capture this brutal genocide through her new short film Forgive Us Our Trespasses. 

Released on Netflix, the film tells the story of a child with disabilities and his mother’s struggles in a Nazi Germany countryside. The mother is a teacher in the local school who is forced to teach the selected curriculum by the Nazis, although she is not a supporter of them. She is very supportive of her son. She always empowers him with her teachings of not being afraid of the cruel world despite knowing the fire is knocking outside. There are also some hints that she is associated with the resistance force against the Nazis, and these teachings are the training for her son in the fighting.

But the fight is not a binary of good vs evil. It is a fight for existence, which the little ones are forced to involve to save their innocence. The film starts with a quote from famous German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “The test of the morality of a society is what it does for its children.” But if the morality of the society becomes corrupt, the children have to make an effort to have their morality right.  Forgive Us Our Trespasses is the story of that struggle. And, with the eyes of this disabled child, Peter, this becomes a hard-hitting film in under 15 minutes.

Knox Gibson as Peter is very good in the role. His expressions through the different emotional moments give us several moments of uneasiness, sympathy and pride. This is a demanding role for him as the main crux lies in his performance. So, the performance has to be perfect to achieve its intended emotional effect. And Gibson passes it with good marks.

As a short film, director Ashley Eakin does her best to compose the whole story perfectly in 14 minutes. No doubt, it is pretty well composed in this limited time. But, I believe the story needs more to tell the audience somewhere down the line. The makers should think about making it into something that will offer the audience something to connect more with these powerful characters. In my opinion, perhaps a feature film out on this subject will be far more affecting.

The film ends with the thought-provoking questions of if there is any meaning in fighting this unequal war. The answer is unknown, but it dares to ask the questions when the corruption in the society is getting similar to that era (Nazi era). And, for that, it should be appreciated.

What did you think of the Netflix short film Forgive Us Our Trespasses? Comment below.

Article by Jonathon Wilson

Jonathon is one of the co-founders of Ready Steady Cut and has been an instrumental part of the team since its inception in 2017. Jonathon has remained involved in all aspects of the site’s operation, mainly dedicated to its content output, remaining one of its primary Entertainment writers while also functioning as our dedicated Commissioning Editor, publishing over 6,500 articles.

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Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Forgive Us Our Trespasses’ on Netflix, Where A Child With A Disability Fights To Flee The Nazis

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• Forgive Us Our Trespasses
• World War II

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In the short film Forgive Us Our Trespasses (Netflix), a young boy with a limb difference is forced into a terrible predicament when he’s targeted for elimination by the Nazi regime. Filmmaker Ashley Eakin directed Trespasses , and co-wrote it with her husband Shawn Lovering. Eakin, who has a rare bone condition, is an advocate for increased awareness of disability issues in film, and one of the first recipients of Netflix’s Emerging Filmmakers Initiative.

FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES : STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: Germany, 1939. Paul (Knox Gibson) and his fellow pupils are in his mother’s schoolroom, where she teaches a curriculum dictated by the Nazi regime. According to the lesson, the arithmetic required to care for an infirm or otherwise disabled person is clearly out of balance with the welfare of the German people. One child questions that assertion. “But if it costs so much to take care of these people, what do we do?” Another one answers coldly. “Kill them.” And Paul? He can only cast a troubled glance at his amputated right limb.

Paul is perfectly capable, of course. His limb difference isn’t a deterrent to operating classroom tools, eating breakfast, or doing anything else that little boys everywhere deserve to do. But he’s afraid. At bedtime prayers, he asks his mother if we really should forgive those who trespass against us. “Even the Nazis?” It’s a fine question, but one with a difficult answer, and a raft of unequal moral implications. His mother reassures him that he is loved, that he is an individual, that he is valued. And the very next day, as if on cue, jackbooted Wehrmacht troops arrive at their doorstep. Hitler has decreed the roundup of those deemed unfit.

They’ve prepared for this terrible likelihood. Paul’s mother sends him running for a nearby barn, where a prosthetic device and other supplies have been secreted. But it’s also a hiding place for other persecuted parties, one well known to the army. In a split second, Paul makes the brave decision to participate in the resistance, as both an unfairly targeted individual and a person bearing witness to blanket persecution.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of? Forgive Us Our Trespasses , Erax and Heart Shot are debuting simultaneously as the first round of shorts from Netflix’s Emerging Filmmaker Initiative. Through the program, Ashley Eakin ( Trespasses ), Hebru Brantley ( Erax ), and Marielle Woods ( Heart Shot ) were able to access early-career funding, development, and production tools, and see distribution of their work on the streamer.

Performance Worth Watching: As a child with a limb difference in Nazi Germany, Paul is both an innocent and a target. Knox Gibson represents that threshold well, but also steps across it effectively once they come for him.

Memorable Dialogue: “You have to think for yourself,” Paul’s mother (Hanneke Talbot) tells him after another day spent ingesting Nazi propaganda in the classroom. “No – calculation – can measure the worth of a life…”

Sex and Skin: None.

Our Take: Forgive Us Our Trespasses is only fourteen minutes in length, but it packs in the notes of tension, dramatic action, and release that would usually embody a film with a much wider scope. An early scene in the schoolroom, where children are indoctrinated into Nazi thinking on the societal benefits of involuntary euthanasia, simmers with what’s left unsaid. Paul, operating a pencil sharpener with his left hand and right limb, puts a very personal face on the arbitrary numbers represented by the math on the chalkboard. And as the camera pans back, the deceivingly safe space of the schoolroom is shown to be indoctrinated itself, a display case for a giant Swastika and an Adolph Hitler portrait. We’ve learned a number of hard truths about everyday life under the Third Reich, and it’s only been three minutes.

Once Paul is forced into the wind by the soldiers breaking down his door, Trespasses becomes an action sequence in miniature. Frantic stumbling through mud and dirt. Desperate cowering from soldiers on the prowl. Achieving safe haven in the nick of time, only to discover it’s compromised. And finding the courage to fight back, hopefully saving oneself and others in the process. It’s another sequence that’s only minutes long, but grandly illustrative, and supported well with tightly-paced direction, evocative lighting, and stirring music cues. By the time of Paul’s ultimate showdown, there’s a strong sense of Forgive Us Our Trespasses continuing into the ether, connecting to any number of other films about this setting and time period, with Paul as an additional character in those longer narratives.

Our Call: STREAM IT. Forgive Us Our Trespasses is grand filmmaking on a small scale, with its advocacy for personhood balanced against a shameful epoch of 20th century history.

Will you stream or skip the 14-minute heartfelt film #ForgiveUsOurTrespasses on @netflix ? #SIOSI — Decider (@decider) February 18, 2022

Johnny Loftus is an independent writer and editor living at large in Chicagoland. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media, and Nicki Swift. Follow him on Twitter: @glennganges

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10 Awesome Short Films By Major Movie Directors

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• "Forgive Us Our Trespasses" is a short film that exposes the horrifying treatment of people with disabilities by the Nazis in 1939 Germany.
• Critics praised the film for its poignant portrayal of hate and violence, highlighting the resilience and resistance of those targeted by Hitler's regime.

Content Warning: The following article contains discussions of discrimination, hate, and genocide.

What are critics saying about the short film Forgive Us Our Trespasses , and on what major platform can it be streamed and watched? Directed by Ashley Eakin and written by Eakin and Shawn Lovering, Forgive Us Our Trespasses is a deep, horrifying examination of how people with disabilities were viewed and treated under the Nazi regime in 1939 Germany. The film explicitly showcases that, just like the other groups who were persecuted and killed, the Nazis viewed people with disabilities as a burden on society that must be eliminated for Germany to flourish.

However, what was particularly nefarious about the Nazi party's plan to kill all people with disabilities is that they justified their actions by insisting that it costs too much money to take care of them and so must be given a "mercy killing" so that German families have enough money to eat and provide for themselves. Under this logic, the Nazis were saying that money was worth more than a person's life, and this is a theme that is prominently explored throughout Forgive Us Our Trespasses . In fact, this was the main theme that critics pointed out in their reviews.

Many famous directors started their careers making short films, of which some boosted their careers by becoming their feature-length debuts.

Everything You Need To Know About Forgive Us Our Trespasses

Forgive Us Our Trespasses is a 2022 14-minute drama short film that follows a young boy named Peter (Knox Gibson) who is being hunted down by the Nazis for having an amputated right arm despite being perfectly capable of taking care of himself. When the Nazis knock on his door, his mother Eva (Hanneke Talbot) tells him to flee and not look back. He initially runs away and hides in a barn. Eventually, like some of the best movies about destroying Nazis , Peter decides that he does not want to keep running, and fights back against his oppressors.

Why You Should Watch Forgive Us Our Trespasses

Despite the film being only 14 minutes long, it manages to deftly explore the themes of hate and violence towards a group of people that an oppressive government viewed as "inferior" or "unworthy" to live, especially among the "pure Aryan people" of Germany. From Forgive Us Our Trespasses ' excellent performances to the great-looking cinematography to the strong writing , everything is perfectly constructed to tell this short yet gripping tale about a boy stapping up against the injustices that his totalitarian government perpetuated. The classroom scene in which Peter is forced to learn about why disabled people "need to be eliminated" is utterly disturbing but perfectly sums up the film's themes.

What The Critics Thought Of Forgive Us Our Trespasses

When Forgive Us Our Trespasses was released on Netflix, it was met with overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics. While some argued that " With less than 15 minutes to tell the tale, 'Forgive Us Our Trespasses' is not as powerful or cathartic as it could've been " (via Abstract AF! ) , many critics agreed that the film still did an effective job at showcasing not just the terror that the Nazis brought onto people with physical disabilities, but also how these people stood up and fought back against Hitler's regime. As the Developmental Disabilities Association 's review says, " The story is one of not giving up and fighting back against insurmountable odds. "

Where To Watch Forgive Us Our Trespasses

Forgive Us Our Trespasses is a Netflix original short film, and can thus only be streamed on that platform. Netflix subscription plans run from $6.99/month for their "Standard with ads" package to $22.99/month for their "Premium" package, which is ad-free and has several other great features. Unfortunately, the short film can only be streamed on Netflix and cannot be rented or purchased on any other platform. Besides the harrowing Forgive Us Our Trespasses , Netflix has many great short films for fans of the medium to enjoy.

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‘Forgive Us Our Trespasses’ Explained: Is Forgiveness Always Possible?

Short film, “Forgive Us Our Trespasses” brings yet another horrific event to light, belonging to the infamous era of World War II. The stories, the occurrences, and the deplorable human conditions have been the inspiration behind many path-breaking films of our time. As soon as you feel that you have seen it all through those prolific films, along comes another, which has such a profound impact on you that you cannot help but think about what that generation would have been through. How did they find the will to keep moving forward amidst such chaos, such brutality, such injustice, and the fear of losing those who mean the world to them?

“Forgive Us Our Trespasses” has been directed by Ashley Eakin, and it captures Peter’s (Knox Gibson) rendezvous with death. Young Peter, who has a disabled arm, is seen sitting in the class when his teacher, Eva (Hanneke Talbot), who is also his mother, makes the class solve a mathematics problem. The problem readout that if a German family needed five Reichsmarks a day to survive, but the cost required to support one person with a hereditary disease was twelve Reichsmarks, then what was the value lost to the German people.

This was the extent of the Nazi propaganda. There is no better way to brainwash an entire generation than by targeting the brooding minds and molding them in the desired manner. Hitler wanted everyone to buy into his “Pure Aryan Race” concept. He knew that if the disabled people were somehow eliminated, then there would be more vacant beds in the hospitals for the soldiers, whom he needed to win the war. But how do you convince a person to kill their loved one without facing any resistance? So he sold an idea that was larger than life.

The dictatorial regime started curating the curriculum in the schools. They wanted the majority to see these people with disabilities and hereditary diseases as marginal human beings who are not worthy of living. A committee was set up under the name “Scientific Treatment of Severe Hereditary and Congenital Diseases.” The committee collected data to figure out how many people with disabilities were in hospitals, so that eventually they could be eliminated. Children were the prime target, but later the operation saw an expansion, where even teens and adults were added, and came to be known as T-4.

When Eva is saying the Lord’s prayer, Peter interrupts her at a specific line that reads, “Forgive those who trespass against us.” The boy innocently asks, “Do they forgive even the Nazis?”

Eva tells him that no calculation can measure the value of life, but she knew that the Nazis would arrive someday to get her disabled son. That day, she feared, had finally arrived. Eva stops them so that Peter gets some time to run to a nearby barn that serves as their hideout. We see another woman already hiding in the barn and in no condition to get up and run. Peter knew that if he stayed there, then the Nazis would catch them both. So he makes the sacrifice. He asks the women to sit quietly while he creates a diversion. The Nazi officer eventually got a hold of him. Somehow, Peter manages to get the better of him and shoot him dead. He rips off his overcoat, wears it, and walks away with a smirk. He survived. History might not remember Peter or children like him. But he knew that he stood up against the atrocities. He knew the importance of forgiveness but also knew how important it was to raise a voice against injustice.

“Forgive Us Our Trespasses” is a 2022 History Drama Short Film directed by Ashley Eakin.

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Home » Review » Forgive Us Our Trespasses review: A simple, poignant story on a seldom talked about chapter in Nazi Germany’s genocides »

Forgive Us Our Trespasses review: A simple, poignant story on a seldom talked about chapter in Nazi Germany’s genocides

The short film’s story is simple, but through its premise, it seeks to increase awareness among viewers with some jarring truths in Nazi Germany’s history that has long been overlooked

Last Updated: 05.47 PM, Feb 17, 2022

Set in Nazi Germany, Forgive Us Our Trespasses tells the story of a young boy named Peter, whose physical disability leads him to be targeted by Hitler’s eugenics doctrine, in which disabled people were ruthlessly executed by the government. One day, Nazi officials arrive at Peter’s home to take him away and he makes a run for it with the former hot on his trail.

The horrors of Nazi Germany marked one of the darkest and tragic periods in global history, with the victims of the same still finding themselves reeling from its trauma even generations later. Forgive Us Our Trespasses seeks to throw light on a chapter in the dark history of Hitler’s regime that rarely figures in most public discourse - the mass murder and eugenics doctrines that specifically targeted disabled people.

Even in the present day, disabled people are not free from rampant instances of ableism, a term used to define the discrimination the community faces, in their daily lives. From infantilisation to lack of basic accommodations to even life-threatening behaviours displayed towards them, the forms of discrimination they have to battle, just to live normal lives usually go unnoticed in an ableist society that caters to the majority, that is the non-disabled. So it comes as no surprise that even history has not been kind to the community, with the constant erasure of struggles and achievements of disabled people in the past, a glaring commentary on how even the past has failed them. Forgive Us Our Trespasses seeks to take a step towards righting this grievous wrong by centring its narrative on the disabled lives lost during the Nazi Era, which I’m sure even many well-versed with Germany’s dark history might not be fully aware of.

The story is told through the eyes of Peter, a young boy who has a limb difference, with part of his right arm missing. The prejudicial attitude the Nazi regime has towards disabled people is reflected even in the curriculum they force schools to follow. In the very first scene itself, we see how a simple math problem comments on how the caregiving costs incurred for a disabled person result in a huge ‘loss’ for the general public. The short film has a host of such subtle nuances in its simple story that is deeply moving, like Peter’s own mother forced to teach the curriculum that devalued her own son’s life and Peter having to listen to his own classmates suggest ‘killing’ disabled people as a valid solution to the ‘problem’. Perhaps, the most gut-wrenching is the scene when Nazi officers arrive at Peter’s home to take him away and we realise that his family has already been prepared for this exact moment, their uneasy wait for the tragic moment echoing through their every waking moment.

The brilliant performance by Knox Bibson just cements the hard-hitting narrative, and the script does a terrific job at putting forward a compelling story in a way that is subtle, yet powerful. The film’s stunning cinematography also does not falter in the least.

The film has no ‘ray of hope’ ending, not when one really thinks about where the film leaves Peter. Rather, its sole purpose seeks to serve as a message to audiences to remember this dark aspect in Germany’s history. It seeks to make people aware that among the numerous victims of the Nazis were also disabled people. Perhaps, this thought-provoking drama also makes a case for the dehumanising way, the disabled community is treated, or rather ignored, even today, suggesting some radical change.

With a very simple, yet thought-provoking story, Forgive Us Our Trespasses seeks to raise awareness on an important, dark phase in history, above all else. And it definitely succeeds in that matter through its powerful, yet subtle narration.

Forgive Us Our Trespasses is available to stream on Netflix.

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Directed by Ashley Eakin, Forgive Us Our Trespasses is Netflix’s latest short drama set against the backdrop of Nazi Germany. Produced by Aaron Barnett, the film is written by Ashley Eakin and Shawn Lovering. The film features Knox Gibson, Hanneke Talbot and Justin Mader. The runtime of this heartfelt drama is 14 minutes. The film has Hindi and English audio and subtitles only.

– Forgive Us Our Trespasses Recap Does Not Contain Spoilers –

A Bitter Boy/Story Ink production movie, Forgive Us Our Trespasses starts with a quote from the famous theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was a huge part in taking the side of the anti-Nazi resistance. The title of the film is a line picked up from the very famous prayer- ‘Our Father in Heaven’. Both these contexts indicate the entire theme of the film- how violence should be resisted but, forgiveness is the one that stands above all.

The film opens with a bunch of students sitting in their maths class where a mathematical problem posed in front of the students generates various responses, curious, inhumane and, an ultimate silence. Later, we are introduced to the teacher and, her son, Peter in their personal space, where the son asks his mother if Nazis are to be forgiven too when she recites the everyday holy prayer. Even though, Peter is convinced of the power of forgiveness and, how no calculation could measure the worth of life, the very next day they are raided by German soldiers as they are Jews. Peter’s mother stays behind as he escapes, running away from the mayhem and, his broken home.

Will the Nazis catch him or will he escape free? The film gives us an open ending to contemplate it all.

Forgive Us Our Trespasses: Stream It or Skip It?

This short movie is a quick run into what it would feel like in that one moment of being a Jew in the world of Nazis when your life is torn apart. The film is crisp and precise and, leaves us with a lot to contemplate about.

You can watch the short film Forgive Our Trespasses now on Netflix.

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Forgive us our trespasses: Movie Review

Initial release : 17 February 2022

Director : Ashley Eakin

Production design : Oleg M. Savytski

Costume design : Anne Dixon

Set decoration : Christina Kuhnigk

I watched this movie two days ago after work, I was drained to bits but after I saw the title, "Forgive our trespasses" I was so intrigued. And you know what, I cried a lot.

If you want a movie that plays a big role in emotions try this. It is a story of the Nazis regime, the Hitler era. In this story, we see a boy who has no limb (disabled). They believed that disabled people were wasting their resources so the way to reduce such was to kill all disabled people. Imagine being killed because you were born disabled!

The first part of the movie when sitting in class says a lot about the regime. The boy says disabled people should be killed. His mother brushes this thought out of her son out of worry. But with time the law became cruel and the boy had to fight for himself. I feel like they changed the boy's character through his challenges. He fought for his right to live, he wanted to be loved and be free.

Peter worries a lot, he didn't ask to be born like this but he has to be forced into the grave. This regime's elimination was pure evil, money was more important than people.

At bedtime prayers, he asks his mother if we really should forgive those who trespass against us. “Even the Nazis?” It’s an intriguing question, one with a difficult answer. This makes us reflect on the daylight of today. How would you answer it? God says we should forgive for we are all sinners, it is for Him to judge not us.

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Forgive us our trespasses.

Directed by Ashley Eakin

Targeted by Nazis as they hunt down and murder people with disabilities, a boy with a limb difference makes a daring decision while running for his life.

Knox Gibson Hanneke Talbot Justin Mader Nathaniel McParland Tyler Hutchings Noah Lamanna Luke Marty Dan MacDonald Todd Campbell

Director Director

Ashley Eakin

Producer Producer

Aaron Barnett

Writers Writers

Ashley Eakin Shawn Lovering

Casting Casting

Jenny Lewis Sara Kay

Editor Editor

Cinematography cinematography.

Michael Galbraith

Executive Producers Exec. Producers

Jeremy Kipp Walker Claire Brooks

Production Design Production Design

Oleg Savytski

Art Direction Art Direction

Graham Caswell

Stunts Stunts

Paul Rapovski Jennifer Iwai

Composer Composer

Alex Weston

Costume Design Costume Design

Bitter Boy Productions

Releases by Date

17 feb 2022, releases by country.

• Digital 16 Netflix
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• Digital PG-13 Netflix
• Digital 13+ Netflix

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Popular reviews

Review by CriticalShock ½ 3

Aktion T4 was a real thing, but it was carried out in secrecy by doctors performing involuntary euthanasia, this short portrays it as if Hitler ordered the army to hunt down their own non-Jew German citizens the same way the SS hunted Jews. If such a thing had really happened, the Nazis would have lost all their popular support. The soldiers are portrayed as blood thirsty lunatics, immediately killing the boy's mother because she didn't open the door within 3 seconds. As if the emotional manipulation and historical inaccuracies weren't enough the ending is an insult to the viewers' intelligence, because we're supposed to believe a disabled boy can overpower and kill a grown up armed soldier (and when he pushes his corpse aside with a smile is just the icing on the cake, lol). It's a shame this short is so bad, because this is a really interesting and little known part of German history.

Review by Alan Berthier ★ 1

All I could think of while watching this is “why are they all speaking English?”

Review by Mike H. ★★

This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

As the kid pushes the dead Nazi off him, he smiles. Why? "Take that! He one-upped the Nazi! Fuck that guy!" And now he runs into the snow, toward nothing, still persecuted by his nation, with the psychological trauma of this ordeal, and his mother dead in their home. So... why does the director ask him to smile? Because he "won"? Tonally it threw me completely out of the story, which is kinda ham-fisted anyway. I'm all for shedding light on Aktion T4, but this is not it.

Review by dresan19 ★★½ 1

in general it's a good short film, but this ending makes me think that they wanted to make a movie but they ran out of money, I don't see another reason why not to develop the script better.

Class of 22

Review by Des Saint ★★★½

Another reminder of the evil of Nazi ideology. They thought that people with disabilities were a burden to society and should be eliminated. A disabled boy chooses to fight back.

Review by GrandOldBastard ★★★★★ 3

As a person with Aspergers and someone who works closely with people who have, for example Downs syndrome and other similar disabilities: This made my motherfucking blood boil.

Review by Voltron 2005 ★★★

Great short. Straight to the point and powerful. Worth watching.

Review by IzGuru ★★

There is only so much you can do in 11 minutes. The short has made me aware of Aktion T4 but this is definitely a moment in history that deserves much more time. Someone should be working on a full length film.

Review by Andy Fell ★★★ 1

In der Kürze steckt die Würze

Treffender kann man für diesen nur 14minütigen Kurzfilm mit dem deutschen Titel Vergib uns unsere Schuld kein Fazit ziehen.

Der Kurzfilm bringt uns ein leider oft vergessenes Verbrechen 😱 der Nazis im 2.Weltkrieg in Erinnerung: Die Verfolgung und Ermordung Behinderter 😬.

Der kleine Peter ist so ein Exemplar: sein rechter Arm ist verstümmelt. Peter lebt in ständiger Angst, entdeckt zu werden. Eines Tages wird er trotzdem von den Nazis aufgespürt. Peter kann fliehen, doch die Nazis sind ihm auf den Fersen. Peter wehrt sich und ...

Den Rest dürft ihr euch auf Netflix ansehen 😶

Review by Luiz Rafael ★★★

Um short film impactante, mostrando um pouco do que foi a AKTION T4, um programa nazista implementado para acabar com as pessoas com deficiências, desde assassinatos à esterilização, muitas das vítimas eram crianças. Possui uma fotografia maravilhosa, vale a pena conferir, é curtinho e tem na Netflix.

ENG. An impactful short film, showing a little of what AKTION T4 was, a Nazi program implemented to end people with disabilities, from murder to sterilization, many of the victims were children. It has wonderful photography, it's worth checking out, it's short and it's on Netflix.

Review by Jake Alda Coffey ★★★½

The thing with short films is that they’re typically short, that’s the point. This I felt was a little too short. I wanted more!

Review by Timmy ★★

I loved representations and all that jazz, but this was just plainly bad. Throughout the whole short, I was disgusted by every choice made by the director.

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Forgive Us Our Trespasses (2022)

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Forgive Us Our Trespasses Reviews

No All Critics reviews for Forgive Us Our Trespasses.

Is Forgive Us Our Trespasses Based on a True Story?

Directed and co-written by Ashley Eakin, ‘Forgive Us Our Trespasses’ is a short film that illustrates the horrific way disabled individuals were hunted down back in Nazi Germany. Set in 1939, it follows a young boy — Peter Weber (Knox Gibson) — with a limb difference as he finds himself on the run to try and save his life, only to realize that he’d have to fight to turn things around. This Netflix original drama is thus incredibly dark, yet it also pulls on the heartstrings for more reasons than one. So now, let’s find out whether it’s based on a true story or not, shall we?

‘Forgive Us Our Trespasses’ could likely be partially based on a true story. After all, there might not be any records of someone named Peter Weber in such a situation, but there were countless others like the character to be targeted by German officials. It didn’t make a difference if they were children or adults; they were all subjected to this brutality from the late-1930s to the mid-1940s because of Adolf Hitler’s dream to change the genetic make-up of the world. He saw disabilities, or rather anything unfamiliar to him, as a negative and chose to wipe it off the face of the Earth.

As the short film specifies, Hitler established the Aktion T4 program for this exact purpose, giving orders for people with disabilities to be involuntarily euthanized after being taken into custody. Psychiatric hospitals and church-run asylums were the two central locations where these mass murders were supposedly first carried out, predating the start of the Holocaust by roughly two years. His exact reasonings behind this demand are unclear, but there are speculations that, apart from restoring the “integrity” of the country, saving money was also a significant factor.

The movie did touch upon the latter by highlighting the reality of how taking care of a “person with a hereditary disease” costs more through a math lesson. Yet, it even clarified that killing them was not “productive” or “humane.” In the end, though, by 1945, nearly 300,000 disabled individuals were heinously murdered under the secret Aktion T4 program, and an additional 400,000 were positively sterilized. As if that wasn’t enough, its implementation is also what led to the development of the gas chamber technology used in the concentration camps during World War II.

There’s a reason the title of this short is ‘Forgive Us Our Trespasses’ — a line directly picked up from a Bible prayer; it’s to accentuate that forgiveness is what matters above all, even in times of necessary resistance. The inclusion of the belief that the value of a life can not be calculated in any way, shape, or form through Peter’s eyes further brings out actual concepts that have especially been discussed a lot over the past couple of years.

Thus, when that gets combined with the image of Nazi Germany, it’s evident that even though this Netflix original might not be the word-to-word retelling of someone’s tale, it is most likely inspired by real-life events. It represents a part of history that many often forget, one that forces us to reconsider what truly counts in life.

Read More: Best Adolf Hitler Movies

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Forgive Us Our Trespasses

• Edit source
• 3 Cast and Characters
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Summary [ ]

In 1939 Germany, a disabled farm boy is pursued by Nazi soldiers after Hitler enacts Aktion T4; a program to euthanize people with disabilities. [1]

Cast and Characters [ ]

• Knox Gibson as Peter
• Hanneke Talbot as Eva
• Justin Mader as Gerrman officer
• Nathaniel McParland as Karl
• Tyler Hutchings as Older boy
• Noah Lamanna as Young Woman
• Luke Marty as Soldier #1
• Dl MacDonald as Soldier #2
• Todd Campbell as Soldier #3

Gallery [ ]

Promotional images [ ].

See More [ ]

References [ ]

• ↑ Netflix Media Center
• 1 Minecraft: Story Mode
• 3 Chastity High

'Forgive Us Our Trespasses': 5 things you need to know about Netflix short film

Targeted by the Nazis as they hunt down and murder individuals with disabilities, a youngster with a limb difference takes a brave decision while escaping for his life in Netflix's new short dramatic film titled 'Forgive Us Our Trespasses'. The narrative takes place in Germany in 1939. People want him dead everywhere he goes, but the youngster knows he's worth more than the life he's been handed, and he'll have to decide what to do next. This bleak tale will linger in your mind long after you've seen the movie.

But, before we get into the details of this fascinating movie, you might want to check out 'Homemade' , 'Good Sam', and 'The Privilege' . READ MORE 'Erax': 5 things you need to know about Netflix mystery movie   'Scoob': Release date, plot, cast, trailer and all you need to know about Scooby Dooby Doo's latest reboot

When does ‘Forgive Us Our Trespasses' release and where can you watch it?

Netflix will premiere ‘Forgive Us Our Trespasses’ on February 17. Netflix can be subscribed to directly through the Apple Store or Google Play. You can also watch it if you sign up for a free trial of the website. Aside from that, the streaming behemoth offers a range of subscription packages. 

What all is 'Forgive Us Our Trespasses' all about?

According to the Netflix logline, "In 1939 Germany, a disabled farm boy is pursued by Nazi soldiers after Hitler enacts Aktion T4; a program to euthanize people with disabilities."

Who stars on ‘Forgive Us Our Trespasses’?

Knox Gibson Knox Gibson is an eight-year-old child from Orange, New South Wales, who enjoys playing soccer, rugby, swimming, cricket, and drumming.

Hanneke Talbot Hanneke Talbot is a Dutch-born British-Canadian actress who played Lieutenant Mann in the second season episodes 'Such Sweet Sorrow' and 'Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2' of 'Star Trek: Discovery'. Talbot has previously acted in the short film 'The Place We Go to Hide' (2014), 'The Advantages of Being Colourblind' (2015), 'Cloud Nine' (2017), and 'Ada' (2019), as well as the television drama 'Playing Dead' (2018), an episode of 'Humans' (2016), and the crime comedy 'Stockholm' (2018).

Who are the showrunners?

Ashley Eakin directs and co-wrote ‘Forgive Us Our Trespasses’. Jeremy Kipp Walker, Claire Brooks, and Aaron Barnett are the producers of the movie.

Take a look at the trailer to see what's in it.

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Forgive Us Our Trespasses (2022)

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On the evening of 21 November 1974, the Provisional Irish Republic of Army carried out a terrorist attack in Birmingham (UK). It was recognised as the bloodiest attack in the Troubles England. This short film tells the “behind the scenes” of this attack, which hides a series of mistakes, delays and frictions within the same terrorist cell responsible for it.

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Forgive Us Our Trespasses: 14 Minutes to Blow Your Minds – Is It Worth a Watch?

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Forgive Us Our Trespasses Reviews

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On the run from the Nazis who are killing people with disabilities, a boy with a limb difference makes a risky choice while making an escape.

Currently available on 2 streaming services.

Forgive Us Our Trespasses (2022)

13min - English, German, Spanish, French, Italian

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We checked for updates on 246 streaming services on September 6, 2024 at 10:29:16 AM. Something wrong? Let us know!

Forgive Us Our Trespasses streaming: where to watch online?

Currently you are able to watch "Forgive Us Our Trespasses" streaming on Netflix, Netflix basic with Ads.

In 1939 Germany, a disabled farm boy is pursued by Nazi soldiers after Hitler enacts Aktion T4; a program to euthanize people with disabilities.

Where does Forgive Us Our Trespasses rank today? The JustWatch Daily Streaming Charts are calculated by user activity within the last 24 hours. This includes clicking on a streaming offer, adding a title to a watchlist, and marking a title as 'seen'. This includes data from ~1.3 million movie & TV show fans per day.

Forgive Us Our Trespasses is 17796 on the JustWatch Daily Streaming Charts today. The movie has moved up the charts by 11694 places since yesterday. In the United States, it is currently more popular than Jon Reep: Ginger Beard Man but less popular than Mojin: The Worm Valley.

Streaming charts last updated: 5:48:43 PM, 09/06/2024

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Forgive Us Our Trespasses (2022)

TV-14 | Short, Drama