Movie Poster

The Holocaust perhaps is the culmination of the kind of horror that can occur when man loses his integrity, his belief in the sanctity of human life.

# Review

I am about to travel to Europe for a river cruise and while scouring Netflix, I came across this documentary about the Holocaust of Hungarian Jews. Perhaps due to the fact that Hungary was on the German side during World War II and was only invaded in the second half of the war, I haven’t heard much about the Hungarian Holocaust (other than Son of Saul), at least compared to the Holocaust atrocities in other countries such as Germany and Poland. This movie really opened my eyes on the plight of the Hungarian Jews and their resilience after the war.

The documentary relies on primary-source first-person accounts from Hungarian Holocaust survivors. The survivors recount their idyllic lives in Hungary pre-Holocaust, the events of the Holocaust, and how they are coming to terms with the atrocities after the war. In particular Irene Zisblatt’s story about swallowing diamonds to prevent them from being taken by the Nazis and Tom Lantos’ accounts of the dire situation within Budapest really moved me. One thing that really surprised me is how fast the non-Jews turned on their Jewish neighbours, and the total blackout of information.

Other accounts, such as Dario Gabbai’s accounts as being a member of the Sonderkommando, who are tasked with incinerating bodies, and Nazi physician Hans Münch’s accounts of conditions within the camps, really furthered the hellish image of the concentration camps. Finally, the American G.I.’s accounts about liberating the Dachau concentration camp really cemented how catastrophic the Holocaust was.

The film does not use any fancy narrative techniques nor any special tricks; the film is still poignant because of the compelling stories.

# Conclusion

A very porignant film about the Holocaust.

# Overall rating: 7.8

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