not the most nuanced story... but that goes for nearly every holocaust movie.

That seems a comfortable assessment

I'd rather you compare it to other holocaust movies for reference

Good point, but on second thought also a bad point. Are 'holocaust movies' a genre unto themselves to be treated with special gloves, like some object of veneration in a museum? They're still films (or documentaries), can't they be judged as such?

I don't think ever movie has to be subtle... your sarcastic comment about demonizing the Nazi's doesn't make sense.

In retrospect, it might be reaction more to how it was advertised. As though SL was very special and to be appreciated because it portrayed a morally 'good' german. That it was somehow subtle in seeing some shades of grey there, around the holocaust (not coincidentally the dominant 'color' scheme of the film) while the film otherwise barely strayed from typical black and white moralism. Oscar wasn't a 'perfect' good guy, he screwed around (Wow, shocking in its modernity and realism!). Amon was still and always a monster. The Jews were martys (not arguing against that, but it was really the central appeal and sell of the film), while Oscar was a bit sympathetic (the cinematic triumph), and the rest of the film was fairly typical ww2 fare. So to be so repetitive.

Are you trying to say there should be a movie that canonizes them? Or have a saintly SS officer?

No, it would be a shocking if someone attempted that. It would probably strike most people (justifiably) as pro-nazi apologetics.

Rehumanizing some more of them someday might be possible. Similar has been done already in Das Boot and maybe Valkyrie. It's probably been done in a limited way already too, under the radar, as a sub plot of 'Black Book'.

It just seemed like Schindlers List made mint off grandiose claims of humanizing a german, without actually accomplishing much.