Saul Fia 2015
- Director: László Nemes
- Based on the book: no
- Cast: Géza Röhrig, Levente Molnár, Urs Rechne
- Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
- None of them
- Why? The subject.
- Seen: 6 November 2021
Saul (Röhrig) is one of the prisoners in
Auschwitz who work to drive people into the shower, pull them out again, carry
them off to be cremated and scrub down the gas chambre.
He sees a child he believes is his son
and becomes obsessed with giving the boy a proper Jewish burial, no matter the
risk to others.
We’ve seen films about the horrors of Holocaust,
read books and listened to the testimonials of survivors. This aspect – the logistics
of gassing, removing, burying, shovelling ashes into the river, looting,
shovelling coal for the ovens, all done by prisoners who know their turn will
come soon - is one more dreadful piece of the horrendous unfathomable puzzle.
How meaningless it all feels.
Does it work as a film? I don’t know. It won the Oscar and loads of other prizes and many-starred reviews. But I don’t know. It’s a strong film to be sure but something is not quite right. Too monotone? Too remote? Too calculated? I don’t know. It’s good to have seen but it will never be a beloved film to me.
3 * of 5.
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