Watch Jakob the Liar

This is one of the darker and more introspective films featuring the late, great Robin Williams. Williams portrays Jakob, a middle-aged resident of a WWII Polish ghetto. By providence, Jakob overhears a radio broadcast which details the movement of Russian troops in their quest to liberate eastern Europe. Jakob is constantly fleeing from the horrors of the ghetto and the oversight of the Nazi command. He decides to turn his knowledge of impending war events into a campaign that uplifts the spirits and resolve of his fellow ghetto neighbors.

The emotional mastery of Robin Williams allows for an intriguing storyline combination. Jakob uses his hope for an end to the Nazi occupation, and the struggles of a little Jewish girl named Lina, to communicate hope and determination to an otherwise downtrodden and hopeless community. An intimate and sometimes humorous cascade of events helps Jakob become a timely, if not understated, hero in the midst of history's most ferocious conflict.

Jakob the Liar is a 1999 comedy with a runtime of 2 hours. It has received mostly poor reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 6.5 and a MetaScore of 40.