Synopsis
October 1944, Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Saul Ausländer is a Hungarian member of the Sonderkommando, the group of Jewish prisoners isolated from the camp and forced to assist the Nazis in the machinery of large-scale extermination.
While working in one of the crematoriums, Saul discovers the corpse of a boy he takes for his son. As the Sonderkommando plans a rebellion, Saul decides to carry out an impossible task: save the child’s body from the flames, find a rabbi to recite the mourner’s Kaddish and offer the boy a proper burial.
Thoughts
How can a film that’s subject matter is so hard to watch, be such a rewarding experience? I still can’t tell you. But this is a gem of film and one that’s gonna be hard to beat as my favourite film of the fest.
Rating
9.5/10
