Süskind

Distributed by Seventh Art Releasing, 1614 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046; 323-845-1455Produced by Pierre Spengler, Adrian Politowski, Gilles WaterkeynDirected by Rudolf van den Berg2012, VHS, color, 118 min. A film based on a true story of a man, Walter Süskind. Perhaps a person like any one of us. He seeks to save his family and himself in a time of war. In the early 1940s Germany has invaded and occupied the Netherlands. Süskind, a Jew, has located a viable way to survive in this war torn and highly changed society. At first he finds satisfaction in doing the noble thing; he believes he is helping to relocate Jewish children to work in Germany. Through a complex set of circumstances Süskind becomes aware of the truth about these children; they are being sent to concentration camps. Here the diabolic of personal safety vs. love of his people interplay in a discourse that keeps the viewer on the edge of the seat. We know quickly what Süskind will do. He saves many children by engineering their transportation to safe locations. But while the success is evident, costs are high for Süskind and his family. This film is extremely well written and starkly shot. Shadows and backdrops enhance but do not distract. The story is dark. At the end I was left with a feeling of loss. And although I know from the story of the true Walter Süskind that without his assistance many children would have died I felt an overwhelming gloom. While this film is primarily a feature film it may perhaps have been uplifting to see some closing bylines about the survivors and thereby give a “real” face to some of these children. But that is the director’s decision. Perhaps the goal was to disturb the viewer. To create that deep pitted feeling that we must watch dog politics and the way governments use social institutions such as war, military, religion and diversity between cultures to perpetuate stereotypes and stigma that promote the public sentiment to “obey” blindly when orders are connected with the constructed understanding of patriotism. This film has some graphic and strong subject matter but I would recommend it for public school and certainly high school classes in government, sociology, political science and related humanities. Distributor sponsored Trailer via YouTube. Awards Winner, Best Narrative Audience Award, Atlanta Jewish Film Festival