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Alexander Beyer, Rüdiger Vogler

Yael Hersonski's powerful documentary achieves a remarkable feat through its penetrating look at another film-the now-infamous Nazi-produced film about the Warsaw Ghetto. Discovered after the war, the... read more read more... unfinished work, with no soundtrack, Film Forum is proud to present Yael Hersonski's A FILM UNFINISHED, having its U.S. theatrical premiere on Wednesday, August 18. Since the end of WWII, one copy of a 60-minute (unfinished) propaganda film, shot by the Nazis in the Warsaw Ghetto in May 1942 (a year prior to the uprising), labeled simply "Ghetto," sat undisturbed in an East German archive. A FILM UNFINISHED presents the entire film, both documentary and fictionalized sequences (e.g. dozens of Jewish patrons at an elegant restaurant; a luxurious funeral cortege). It includes a revealing interview with Willy Wist, the only cinematographer identified with the production (himself caught onscreen in his SS uniform), as well as scenes in which now-elderly former residents of the Warsaw Ghetto, reviewing the footage, occasionally recognize their neighbors, or report upon the filmmakers' efforts to stage fantasies of affluence and well-being, or of Jews treating their less fortunate compatriots with callous disdain. This is a film of enormous import: it documents conditions under which ghetto residents lived and the efforts (however imperfect) of the perpetrators to recast this reality to suggest an entirely different scenario. A FILM UNFINISHED is presented with support from the Joan S. Constantiner Fund for Jewish and Holocaust Film. -- (C) Film Forum

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915 ratings

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60 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 29 min.

Directed by: Yael Hersonski

Release Date: August 18, 2010

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DVD Release Date: January 1, 2011

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Flixster Reviews (115)

  • flixsterman
    May 6, 2011
    flixsterman
    An insightful cache of informative but sickening images shot within the confines of Warsaw's Jewish Ghetto during the holocaust. Includes scenes staged by Hitler's propaganda machine as well as raw, unedited footage of Nazi crimes against humanity.
  • fb791220692
    May 5, 2011
    fb791220692
    The most depressing documentary that everyone should watch.
  • itsjustme2004
    March 17, 2011
    itsjustme2004
    I'm not sure which was harder to watch...this film, or the extra feature "Death Mills". "Death Mills" is an actual short film directed by Billy Wilder for the U.S. War Dept in 1945. The short film was originally intended for screening in occupied Germany and Austria to show the ... read morepeople in those countries what horrors they supported. It was the first documentary to show what the Allies found when they liberated the camps: the survivors, the conditions, and the evidence of mass murder. This was eventually shown in the U.S., but was rarely done so. This short film alone made this a memorable watch.
  • gator681
    February 19, 2012
    gator681
    There have been many incomplete films relegated to the dutsbins of oblivion. What separates the subject of "A Film Unfinished" is not its simple title of "The Ghetto" but its subject matter, that of the Warsaw Ghetto in May 1942, shortly before its liquidation, containing about ... read morean hour's worth of footage(some shot in color) commissioned by the Nazis that was forgotten for decades in East German archives.

    For me watching the footage is like watching ghosts while providing insight into the horrible conditions inside the ghetto. It is very emotional for survivors to watch it, looking for people they once knew amongst the footage, some of it staged to give the appearance of affluence. As one survivor puts it, they did not have flowers and if they did, they would have eaten them.

    So what was the purpose of the footage shot? We know it was propaganda, of course, but without any narration or soundtrack, it is hard to know for sure what the point was since that could change the meaning of what we see, even with the testimony of one of the cameramen.(A neat little trick I learned from Screen Studies 101.) And it is also hard to say what footage was intended for a completed film.(Like a lot of filmmakers, the Nazis used multiple takes.) Some survivors thought the film was made to give a negative portrait of the ghetto while I think the Nazis were intending to give the indication of a thriving and vibrant community to cover up any claims of the awful deed they were about to commit since they were not exactly open about the slaughters they committed.
  • fb720603734
    September 15, 2010
    fb720603734
    Some films transcend filmmaking or entertainment and just ARE important and valuable and necessary. This is one of those rare and true finds. Literally. Discovered in a vault in East Germany after WWII were reels of silent footage filmed by Third Reich cameramen in the Warsaw ... read moreGhetto. Interspersed amongst the images of the massive amount of suffering are staged "scenes" of Jews in more luxurious settings (parties, lavish dinners, etc.). Wealthy-appearing Jews were also forced to walk carelessly by those who were starving or dead in the streets, to demonstrate how callously the Jews behaved. Holocaust survivors are shown this footage, and it is their reactions that prove to be the most haunting images in this film. A modern-day interview with one of the cameramen from that time adds yet another layer to what could have been a very dry documentary. While not the most rigorous of docs on this subject (it could have used a little more background exposition), it resonates greatly, especially today, where so-called "Reality" shows are more carefully written and staged than most fictional narratives. The lines between truth and fiction are so blurred these days, this vital filmgoing experience is a jolt of the reality we NEED to see.
  • Hamee
    April 1, 2012
    Hamee
    This is so heartbreaking to watch. The presentation of this story was unique and captivating, but the images are just horrible.
  • akuhndog
    November 18, 2011
    akuhndog
    All around the world there lay pieces of films that have been left unfinished. I am sure of it, even if I have no evidence to support my theory. But I also am confident that none of those films are as fascinating as the film titled "The Ghetto", which lay in a concrete vault in t... read morehe middle of the woods until it was finally discovered and viewed. However, those other films also do not have writer/director Yael Hersonski's talents to supplement the material in the form of the documentary A Film Unfinished.

    During Adolf Hitler's rise to power in Germany and the surrounding lands, the propaganda department of the Third Reich was extremely active and it took full advantage of the allure of the motion picture to the people of Germany. Propaganda films released by Nazi Germany are notorious for their extreme views, as well as their careful construction. In Quentin Tarantino's latest film, Inglourious Basterds, he even pays tribute to the likes of Leni Riefanstahl's Triumph of the Will with a film within a film, the fictitious "Nation's Pride". So when a partial film was unearthed depicting everyday life in the Jewish ghetto in Warsaw, Poland, it spikes curiosity as to why the film was never completed. But it also raises such questions as how documentary films are constructed and how much truth actually exists.

    In A Film Unfinished, director Hersonski examines the film that was found and invites survivors of the Warsaw ghetto to view the film and reflect on what they see and what they remember. This tactic may be seen by some as being manipulative, but when you are talking about ghettoes and the Holocaust, who better to talk to than people with first-hand experience? Hersonski also investigates the work of one of the cameramen, Willy Wist, through a transcript of a war crime trial in which he testified.

    The beginning of the film is a bit sluggish and uninteresting as the film was just digging in, but once the narration faded to the great interviews and footage of this film, it became much more engaging. I cannot help but think that at the end of the day I enjoyed this film as much as I did based simply on the topic of the film. Anything to do with the Third Reich and the Holocaust is immensely fascinating to me because it is the most recent event in human history that I cannot fathom actually being allowed to happen to the extent at which it did. And I am not denying it at all as some chemically unbalanced theorists might suggest. On the contrary I firmly believe it happened and that is what is so unbelievable.

    Hersonski adds a great touch in what is her first feature film, presenting the material in the most interesting way possible. It made me think about the film industry in Nazi Germany and the power of film to be a persuasive argument as the filmmakers fabricated scenes to say what they wanted communicated instead of capturing the truth of the situation. It is a scary thing to think about, but it also made me think of contemporary documentary films and how much these films also do this. Not knowing the history, which was well researched by Hersonski here when she cited journals and trial transcripts as well as first-hand accounts, it is impossible to decipher the truth from lies. Even in this film, the viewer must trust the filmmaker is telling the truth. A Film Unfinished may not be the best or most important documentary on the Third Reich and all things related, but it does tell a good story with some real people and real footage of an era of Human history that many would like to forget, but none of us can ever escape.
  • popcornnroses
    October 2, 2010
    popcornnroses
    Stunning, heartwrenching documentary about a Nazi propaganda film shot in the Warsaw ghetto in 1942 that was never released. This film shows just what true evil is, as Nazi filmmakers staged scenes of Jewish rich folk living a fun, comfortable life among the horrifying conditions... read more of the poor. Many of the images are truly disturbing, and the mass grave scenes near the end of the film will haunt you for the rest of your life once you've seen them. A MUST SEE film on all levels for everyone over 14 years old.
  • Norzeleak
    September 25, 2010
    Norzeleak
    This is a beautifully pieced together historical documentary which focuses more on information than anything else. It's not necessarily entertaining, nor does it try to be for people who aren't interested in the content, making this much better than if it tried to expand its audi... read moreence.
  • sjeunette
    April 20, 2010
    sjeunette
    At the end of WWII, 60 minutes of raw film, having sat undisturbed in an East German archive, was discovered. Shot by the Nazis in Warsaw in May 1942, and labeled simply "Ghetto," this footage quickly became a resource for historians seeking an authentic record of the Warsaw Ghet... read moreto. However, the later discovery of a long-missing reel complicated earlier readings of the footage. A FILM UNFINISHED presents the raw footage in its entirety, carefully noting fictionalized sequences (including a staged dinner party) falsely showing "the good life" enjoyed by Jewish urbanites, and probes deep into the making of a now-infamous Nazi propaganda film.

    A FILM UNFINISHED is a film of enormous import, documenting some of the worst horrors of our time and exposing the efforts of its perpetrators to propel their agenda and cast it in a favorable light.

View All A Film Unfinished Reviews

Critic Reviews

Colin Covert
March 3, 2011
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune

An electrifying essay on film's ability to falsify history. Full Review

Cliff Doerksen
January 4, 2011
Cliff Doerksen, Chicago Reader

Filmmaker Yael Hersonski reshapes the impossibly vile and tragic source material into a devastating record of Nazi criminality. Full Review

Bill Goodykoontz
December 2, 2010
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic

Yael Hersonski's documentary is infuriating, heartbreaking, devastating -- and scary. It depicts a lie upon a lie. Full Review

Chris Vognar
November 4, 2010
Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News

A remarkable new documentary that reminds us of film's inherent capacity for lying. Full Review

Steven Rea
October 14, 2010
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

A Film Unfinished is a profoundly unnerving historical document. Full Review

Leba Hertz
September 30, 2010
Leba Hertz, San Francisco Chronicle

What we are left with is perhaps one of the most disturbing 60 minutes of raw footage ever put together. Full Review

Stephen Cole
September 24, 2010
Stephen Cole, Globe and Mail

The result is a harrowing, unsettling journey -- a terribly moving document. Full Review

Michael O'Sullivan
September 24, 2010
Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post

A Film Unfinished may not be the strangest making-of documentary you've ever seen. It may, however, be the most affecting. Full Review

Ty Burr
September 23, 2010
Ty Burr, Boston Globe

Hersonski not only dispels the big lie at the center of the Nazi footage but she ingeniously separates and identifies the many smaller lies and where they entwined with facts. Full Review

Peter Rainer
September 10, 2010
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor

It is a privileged experience to watch A Film Unfinished. There is no other historical document like it but, of course, its lasting value is as a human document. Full Review

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