#LABYRINTH OF LIES 2014 TRIAL#

Most of his colleagues ridicule him and the senior public prosecutor, Walter Friedberg ( Robert Hunger-Buehler), suggests itРІР‚в„ўs a lost cause because heРІР‚в„ўll need hard proof of murder (all other crimes expired under the statute of limitations). RadmannРІР‚в„ўs life changes radically when he takes on the case of Kirsch, or rather that of the man Kirsch recognized, who should not be allowed to teach but who clearly lied when he was interviewed for the job after the war.Р”Р‡rom the very start, thereРІР‚в„ўs resistance to RadmannРІР‚в„ўs actions, even from within the courthouse. Even pretty Marlene ( Friederike Becht), who claims she canРІР‚в„ўt pay for her fine, gets no reprieve, though he does manage to start dating her not much later. The filmРІР‚в„ўs (fictitious) protagonist is young Johann Radmann ( Alexander Fehling), an ambitious and morally upright public prosecutor in late-1950s Frankfurt whoРІР‚в„ўs frustrated that as a newbie, heРІР‚в„ўs stuck dealing with traffic offenses. The message is clear: People who were part of the Nazi destruction machine didnРІР‚в„ўt just disappear in 1945, though most people ignored that ugly notion as they tried to get back to РІР‚СљnormalРІР‚Сњ as quickly as possible after the war. Though both are only minor characters, it perfectly sets up the filmРІР‚в„ўs main theme, as the passerby, a camp survivor, drops all his art supplies when he realizes that the kind educator was one of his guards in Auschwitz.

Through an iron-bar fence, a kind schoolteacher offers a light to a passing stranger, Simon Kirsch ( Johannes Krisch), who seems to have misplaced his matches. Labyrinth of Lies opens with a short but very effective scene in 1958 Frankfurt that initially feels like a throwaway moment.

6 in Germany, this TIFF world premiere was directed by talented newcomer Giulio Ricciarelli and was picked up in Toronto by Sony Pictures Classics, which also handled The Lives of Others, another accomplished debut feature that dug deep into GermanyРІР‚в„ўs socio-historical psyche. Germans themselves, especially, either desperately wanted to forget or were completely unaware of what had happened there a mere 15 years earlier.

#LABYRINTH OF LIES 2014 TRIAL#

It feels like the big screen is a little too big for this film but it is quite a nice TV film and a good starter to get into post war history.The Nuremberg trials, held right after WWII ended, are famous, and the 1961 Eichmann trial in Jerusalem is known to most, also thanks to Hannah ArendtРІР‚в„ўs writings on the subject, which gave us the frightening idea of the РІР‚Сљthe banality of evil.РІР‚Сњ Arguably just as important were the Frankfurt Auschwitz trials, which also took place in the early 1960s but which are practically unknown, though that may change after the release of Labyrinth of Lies ( Im Labyrinth des Schweigens), which successfully dramatizes the events leading up to the hearings that would finally uncover what really happened in the eponymous concentration camp. All in all it was a very interesting film with a relevant message but quite a few downsides in delivery. They were most of the time superficial and felt stiff. Unfortunately it failed in delivering meaningful conversations. Whenever a character had a monologue it was very catching and filled with emotions one could connect to. Her relevance for the story was not very clear as well. It was hard to connect to their relationship and to her. A downside to the film is its romantic relationship between the main character and his love interest. The cinematography is quite nice and the music fits the time and setting. It also explores the German people's psyche after the war and the motivation behind covering up what happened. Awful crimes are not portrayed too visually and yet the film manages to transmit the severity of those. It deals with the topic in a very non sensational way. People in Germany are used to dealing openly with the crimes committed during WWII to the point where the time when it was not like that is barley remembered. This film poses a not very often portrayed link in the chain of events during and following WWII. And that's precisely what the main character is facing in his quest of uncovering the crimes Germany committed during WWII. The English title 'Labyrinth of Lies' should rather be a direct translation from the German title which is more among the lines 'Labyrinth of Silence'.

Labyrinth of lies 2014