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Released by: Oscilloscope Labs
Released on: 3/8/2011
Director: Yael Hersonski
Cast: N/A
Year: 2010
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The Movie:
When the Second World War came to a close, Allied forces found approximately sixty minutes of unused footage stashed safely inside a film storage facility in East Germany. The film can was labeled simply 'ghetto' and aside from the fact that it was shot in Warsaw, Poland in 1942 not much else was really known about it. There were no credits nor were there any notes included with the film. Those who saw it understandably assumed that it was actual documentary footage and that it was probably a pretty accurate look at what life was like in the Warsaw ghetto during the Nazi occupation of Poland, but further examination revealed a very different story.
Historians would later discover a previously missing reel of footage that helped put the pieces of the puzzle together, and Yael Hersonski's A Film Unfinished pretty much wraps up the mystery by interviewing a cameraman who was involved in the making of it and people who were living in the ghetto when the Nazi's were filming there. On the surface what seems like fairly innocent documentary footage is, on closer inspection, nothing more than propaganda. Clever and very well made propaganda, sure, but there are clues that expose the footage for the falsity that it is and which very clearly underline its anti-Semitic trappings.
What the film shows initially is a bunch of different affluent Jewish families living 'the good life' inside the three square mile ghetto that held millions of other Jewish people forced to live there under Nazi rule. Dinner parties, fancy dress, ornate household decorations, travelling not by foot but by carriage and other aspects of a more affluent lifestyle are highlighted here and intentionally contrasted with footage of other prisoners so starved for food you can see the bones protruding through their sickly skin. We're shown in unflinching detail the corpses of those who died in the overcrowded and unclean conditions put out to the street for pick up each day and the literal mountains of feces that piled up outside of apartment buildings when internal plumbing stopped working, all while the 'rich Jews' continue to eat fine food and enjoy comfortable surroundings.
The aforementioned interview with the cameraman notes that while the men filming the material were aware that it was going to be used by the German war machine, they didn't have a part in the editing and so weren't actually sure how. That said, he admits that they did multiple takes of certain shots based on instructions that they were given. Interviews with those who lived in the ghetto, most of whom were children at the time, confirm that cameramen were there fairly often but that they too had no idea why they were being filmed. Some were bribed or coerced into participating in the film, knowing that the footage would probably be used to make the Nazi case against their own people but really having no choice in the matter. It's all quite sad and tragic and horrifying but those with an interest in World War II or propaganda films in general will likely find it quite fascinating.
Video/Audio/Extras:
A Film Unfinished looks about as good as you can realistically expect it to in this 1.78.1 anamorphic widescreen transfer. The newly shot interview footage is crystal clear while the archival footage from the found film is obviously not. It's all quite watchable, but expect some print damage and spots throughout the older footage as it plays out. There's really nothing to complain about here though, really, it all looks fine.
The English language Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo track is free of any problems. The dialogue is clean and clear while the background music is well balanced. The optional English subtitles are easy to read and there are no obvious typos to complain about.
Extras include an American short film made to show, for the first time, what was found in the German concentration camps when the war ended. It is, like the feature attraction, as appalling as it is interesting. An interview with author and film researcher Adrian Wood is a fourteen minute explanation of the history of the film in question, while Scholar Michael Berenbaum On A Film Unfinished is a three and a half minute explanation of what makes this particular Holocaust film different from other, similar pieces. A study guide is also included on the disc, as are trailers for other Oscilloscope DVD releases. Inside Oscilloscope's typically lavish and impressive packaging is an essay from Annette Insdorf that explains why she, as a Professor of Film Studies, feels this film is important.
The Final Word:
Grim and fascinating, A Film Unfinished gives us an interesting look into the Third Reich's propaganda machine and does a commendable job of explaining and exploring the truth behind the footage. Oscilloscope's DVD looks and sounds just fine and contains some excellent extra features, making this one a documentary well worth seeking out.
