The Shoah on Screen – Representing Crimes Against Humanity Big Screen, Film-Makers Generally Have to Address the Key Question of Realism
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Mémoi In attempting to portray the Holocaust and crimes against humanity on the The Shoah on screen – representing crimes against humanity big screen, film-makers generally have to address the key question of realism. This is both an ethical and an artistic issue. The full range of approaches has emember been adopted, covering documentaries and fiction, historical reconstructions such as Steven Spielberg’s Schindler’s List, depicting reality in all its details, and more symbolic films such as Roberto Benigni’s Life is beautiful. Some films have been very controversial, and it is important to understand why. Is cinema the best way of informing the younger generations about what moire took place, or should this perhaps be left, for example, to CD-Roms, videos Memoi or archive collections? What is the difference between these and the cinema as an art form? Is it possible to inform and appeal to the emotions without being explicit? Is emotion itself, though often very intense, not ambivalent? These are the questions addressed by this book which sets out to show that the cinema, a major art form today, cannot merely depict the horrors of concentration camps but must also nurture greater sensitivity among increas- Mémoire ingly younger audiences, inured by the many images of violence conveyed in the media. ireRemem moireRem The Shoah on screen – www.coe.int Representing crimes The Council of Europe has 47 member states, covering virtually the entire continent of Europe. It seeks to develop common democratic and legal princi- against humanity ples based on the European Convention on Human Rights and other reference texts on the protection of individuals. Ever since it was founded in 1949, in the aftermath of the Second World War, the Council of Europe has symbolised Council of Europe Publishing Volume I reconciliation. Anne-Marie BARON ISBN 978-92-871-5960-1 Editions du Conseil de l’Europe Council of Europe Publishing Editions du Conseil de l’Europe Council of Europe Publishing Editions du Conseil de l’Europe -:HSTCSH=VZ^[UV: Council of Europe Publishing http://book.coe.int Council of Europe Publishing e12/US$18 Council of Europe Publishing Editions du Conseil de l’Europe The Shoah on screen – Representing crimes against humanity Volume 1 Anne-Marie BARON Council of Europe Publishing French version: La Shoah à l’écran – Crime contre l’humanité et représentation ISBN 978-92-871-5492-7 The opinions expressed in this work are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily refl ect the offi cial line of the Council of Europe. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated, reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means , electronic (CD-Rom, Internet, etc.) or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the Public Information and Publications Division, Directorate of Communication (F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex or [email protected]). Design: Graphic Design Workshop, Council of Europe Council of Europe Publishing F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex http://book.coe.int ISBN 978-92-871-5960-1 © Council of Europe, June 2006 Reprinted July 2007 Printed at the Council of Europe Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................... 7 1. Genocide and crimes against humanity .............................................. 7 2. The problem of terminology ............................................................... 9 3. The question of representation ........................................................... 10 4. Cinema and history ............................................................................ 12 5. Documentary and fi ction .................................................................... 14 6. Overstatement and understatement .................................................... 16 7. Realism and anti-realism .................................................................... 17 8. Filmic and profi lmic codes ................................................................ 18 9. The question of comedy ..................................................................... 19 P ARTONE – D OCUMENTARYVIEWS A. One school of thought ........................................................................................ 25 1. Pioneers .............................................................................................. 25 Alain Resnais, Nuit et brouillard (Night and Fog), 1955 .................. 25 M arcel Ophüls, Le chagrin et la pitié, chronique d’une ville française sous l’Occupation (The Sorrow and the Pity, Chronicle of a French City under the Occupation), 1970 ................. 28 F rédéric Rossif, De Nuremberg à Nuremberg(From Nuremberg to Nuremberg), 1994 .......................................................................... 31 2. Documentaries with no historical documents .................................... 34 Claude Lanzmann, Shoah, 1985 ........................................................ 34 Arnaud des Pallières, Drancy Avenir, 1997 ....................................... 38 3. Protagonists and eyewitnesses ............................................................ 41 Emil Weiss, Falkenau, vision de l’impossible (Falkenau, the Impossible), 1988 ......................................................................... 41 Rony Brauman and Eyal Sivan, Un spécialiste, portrait d’un criminel moderne, (The Specialist: Portrait of a Modern Criminal), 1999 .................................................................................. 43 Claude Lanzmann, Sobibor, 14 octobre 1943, 16 heures (Sobibor, 1 4 October 1943, 4 p.m.), 2002 ......................................................... 46 3 The Shoah on screen – Representing crimes against humanity B. Other views . .............................................................................................................. 49 Katherine Smalley, So Many Miracles, Canada, 1986 ....................... 49 Dan Weissmann, Terezin Diary, United States, 1989 ........................ 51 Marian Marzynski, Shtetl: A Journey Home, United States, 1996 .... 53 Ruth Beckermann, Jenseits des Krieges (East of War), Austria, 1996 ...................................................................................... 55 Tsipi Reibenbach, Shalosh Ahayot (Three Sisters), Israel, 1997 ....... 57 P ARTTWO – AMERICAN FICTION FILMS 1. Examples of realism ........................................................................... 61 Marvin Chomsky, Holocaust, 1978 ................................................... 61 Steven Spielberg, Schindler’s List, 1994 ........................................... 64 2. Modern historical reconstruction ....................................................... 68 Jon Avnet, Uprising, 2001 ................................................................. 68 3. “Simple reality” ................................................................................. 71 Roman Polanski, The Pianist, 2002 ................................................... 71 4. Aftermath of war ................................................................................ 74 Alan J. Pakula, Sophie’s Choice, 1982 ............................................... 74 Istvan Szabo, Taking Sides, 2001 ....................................................... 76 P ARTTHREE – EUROPEAN FICTION FILMS 1. Nazi propaganda ................................................................................ 81 Veit Harlan, Jud Süss (Jew Süss), Germany, 1940 ............................. 81 2. Historical reconstructions .................................................................. 83 Heinz Schirk, Die Wannseekonferenz (The Wannsee Conference), Austria, 1984 ...................................................................................... 83 Andzej Wajda, Korczak, Poland, 1990 ............................................... 86 3. History and fi ction ............................................................................. 88 Andrzej Munk, Pasazerka (The Passenger), Poland, 1963 ............... 88 Joseph Losey, Monsieur Klein (Mr Klein), France/Italy, 1976 .......... 91 Louis Malle, Au revoir les enfants (Goodbye, Children), France, 1987 ....................................................................................... 94 Francesco Rosi, La Tregua (The Truce), Italy, 1997 .......................................................................................... 96 4 Contents Werner Herzo, Unbesiegbar (Invincible), Germany, 2001 ................ 98 Costa-Gavras, Amen, France, 2002 .................................................. 100 4. Anti-realism ...................................................................................... 103 Emmanuel Finkiel, Voyages, France, 1999 ...................................... 103 Yolande Zauberman, La guerre à Paris (The War in Paris), France, 2001 ..................................................................................... 106 Frederick Wiseman La dernière lettre (The Last Letter), France, 2002 ..................................................................................... 108 Marceline Loridan-Ivens La petite prairie aux bouleaux (The Little Birch-Tree Meadow), France, 2003 ................................. 111 P ARTFOUR – COMEDIES Charles Chaplin, The Great Dictator, United States, 1940 .............. 115 Ernst Lubitsch, To Be or Not to Be, United States, 1942 . ................ 118 Roberto Benigni, La vita è bella (Life Is