January 27th marked the Day of Remembrance of Genocides and Crimes against Humanity, in commemoration of the liberation of the Auschwitz camp in 1945. On this occasion, France Télévisions broadcast the heartbreaking and necessary Holocausta documentary by Claude Lanzmann which is now a milestone in the history of cinema.
Performed over a period of 16 years, the film is more than just a documentary. It constitutes a place of remembrance and a touching testimony to the systematic extermination of six million Jews by Nazi Germany. Here are three main reasons to see or rewatch the film.
A film at the origin of the term “Shoah »
Between 1941 and 1945, almost six million Jews they were victims of the Nazi extermination enterprise. The term “Shoah”, which appears in the Bible and means “annihilation” in Hebrew, has become the most used to designate this tragedy after the release of Claude Lanzmann’s film. This isn’t the only distinctive element of the film. Holocaust was also recorded in UNESCO Memory of the World Registerwhose mission is to protect the documentary heritage in the world.
16 years of work, without archive images
Claude Lanzmann deliberately avoided it the use of stock images, preferring to give the floor to witnesses, victims and executioners in exclusive interviews. Overall, the director captured 300 hours images and made about thirty interviews. In an interview for Antenne 2 in 1984, the director explained:
“Victim and executioners, it’s the first time they’ve spoken in 40 years and we see them speaking. I had more difficulty finding the executioners than the victims. »
This touching device impressed the director’s contemporaries. In a letter addressed to the filmmaker the day after the first screening in 1984, Simone de Beauvoir writes about the film:
“It’s a monument which for generations will allow men to understand one of the most sinister and enigmatic moments in their history. »
“A fraternal birth »
Between work investigation, looking for witnessesFrom meditation of the speech extended for eleven years and the assembly that lasted fiveThe making of Holocaust lasted 16 years. In the film, Claude Lanzmann chooses the prejudice of the diversity of the stories, calling them both into question camp survivors as Nazis or even witnesses.
As reported by Franceinfo, Claude Lanzmann has come under criticism accusing him of reliving trauma for his witnesses by making them remember and talk about the absolute horror. A criticism to which the director responded : “I have often been criticized for my sadism in questions. It’s false, it’s a fraternal birth. The hairdresser’s tears are for me the seal of truth. »
This Tuesday, January 30, the film will be broadcast on France 2 at 9pm, then it will be replayed for 30 days.
Listen to Apéro des Daronnes, Madmoizelle’s show that aims to break down taboos on parenting.
Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
