Left Luggage (1998): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1998, Left Luggage is a drama film directed by Jeroen Krabbé, running about 100 minutes.

What it’s about. While escaping from Nazis during the WWII, a Jewish man dug suitcases full of things dear to his heart in the ground two. The war deprived him of his family, and afterwards he endlessly turns over the soil of Antwerp to find the suitcases, which makes him look obsessed. He keeps checking old maps and keeps digging, trying to find, in fact, those he lost. His daughter Chaya is a beautiful modern girl looking for a part-time job. She finds a place as a nanny in the strictly observant Chassidic family with many children, although her secular manners clearly fly in the face of many commandments. One of the reasons she is accepted is that mother of the family is absolutely overburdened by the household, so she stays despite the resistance of the father, normally - an indisputable authority in the family. She develops a special bond with the youngest of the boys, four-year old Simcha, so far incapable of speaking.

Who’s in it. Left Luggage stars Laura Fraser as Chaya Silberschmidt, Adam Monty as Simcha Kalman, Isabella Rossellini as Mrs. Kalman and Jeroen Krabbé as Mr. Kalman, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 6.7/10, Left Luggage has drawn a solid, mixed-to-positive response. It went on to earn $100.5K at the box office.

Where to watch. In US you can stream it on Chai Flicks. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Left Luggage page.

If you liked it. Fans of Left Luggage tend to enjoy The Shawshank Redemption, The Godfather, Schindler's List and The Godfather Part II.