Il labirinto del silenzio

"Labyrinth of Lies" (2014 release from Germany; original title "Im Labyrinth des Schweigens" or "In the Labyrinth of Silence" 122 min.) brings the story of the events leading up to the so-called Frankfurt Auschwitz trials in 1963. As the movie opens, we are told it is "Frankfurt-am-Main, 1958", and we get to know a young prosecutor named Johann Radmann, who is just starting his career, doing traffic violations. But soon he gets (and seizes) the opportunity to look into the case of a Waffen SS soldier who was a commander at Auschwitz and is now teaching in grade school as if nothing ever happened. Radmann soon finds that there is widespread resistance to his efforts to prosecute ex-Nazis. At this point, we are 15 minutes into the movie but to tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this movie is an important reminder that the sentiment in Germany wasn't always what it is nowadays and has been for decades. It appears that after WW II, the entire country went about its business as if nothing had happened, and collectively tries to whitewash Auschwitz from memory. But as Radmann points out, "to remain silent is to poison our country's democracy". So he speaks up. It is an incredible story. Kudos to the movie's producers for bringing us this important historical reminder. Besides the important moral and historical aspects, the movie does a great job portraying what daily life in the late 50s and early 60s was in West Germany. Check out the great looking cars! "Labyrinth of Lies" was Germany's submission for this year's Best Foreign Language Movie Oscar nominations, which should give you an idea how well the movie was viewed in its home country (the fact that it didn't get the Oscar nomination doesn't diminish the merits of the movie).

"Labyrinth of Lies" was released over a year ago. I have no idea why it is just now finding its way into US theaters, but better late than never. The movie showed up this weekend at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati, I figure this won't stick around for long. The Sunday matinée screening where I saw this at was surprisingly well attended, I am happy to report. If you are in the mood for a top-notch quality foreign movie that has a very important lesson and reminder, I urge you to check out "Labyrinth of Lies", be it in the theater, on Amazon Instant Video or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray. "Labyrinth of Lies" is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

This is definitely one of the more powerful holocaust films. It doesn't have any visual images of the holocaust. It's about the aftermath. To bring the perpetrators on trial, the effects on a Germany (or West Germany) in total denial, of the children of the Nazi era and their latent guilt of what their parents may have done or did. One feels what it was to grow up German during this period of the late 1950's.

It's very emotional performance by Alexander Fehling. We feel his anguish as he learns the scale of his country's complicity of what happened – and his anger and frustration at the lies to circumvent it all. And this is told at the personal level – it is individuals whose lives were shattered and it is individuals who did the destroying.

Unique and impressive.

For years I've been watching films from the "Allies" point of view and I never thought of the German point of view or I just assumed German people knew of the atrocities committed by their fellow men.

Its amazing and heartbreaking to know that Germans actually didn't know or chose to not believe what the Nazis were doing to the Jews during WWII.

We were made to believe also that all the Nazis were living in hiding after WWII, when some of them were actually living in relative comfort and free from scrutiny, among some of the people they tortured.

Labyrinth of Lies is the film that gives us a look of how the Germans were actually living in denial for years after the war and how some of the Nazis that committed war crimes were living their normal lives as if nothing had happened.

Very interesting film and very easy to understand if you know the history.

An agreeable and well-acted approach to a historically significant but little-known event. In Germany, 15 years after World War II, one young man forces an entire country to face its past. Set in Frankfurt, 1958, for the first time, the Germans judge the Germans. The young state prosecutor Johann Radmann - Alexander Fehling- finds some documents that allow him to launch a judicial process against some members of the SS who served in Auschwitz. But the horrors of the past and the hostility towards his work bring him close to collapse, as he finds it almost impossible to make his way through a labyrinth in which everyone seems to be involved or guilty. A young and ambitious prosecutor discovers how important German institutions and some members of the government are involved in a conspiracy whose purpose is to cover up the crimes of the Nazis during World War II (1939-1945).

This is the remarkable true story of the pursuit of justice for the victims of Auschwitz. An interesting and pleasant film with a lot of social content and good performances. Here we witness the struggle of a young prosecutor who, avoiding all kinds of obstacles from both higher authorities and other people who hide or wish to live in peace without problems, nevertheless manages to bring those guilty of heinous crimes to trial. This intelligent and attractive film, endowed with extreme honesty, without an iota of falsehood and a lot of courage was well directed by Giulio Ricciarelli. It got several prizes and nominations , such as: 20 Satellite Awards (International Press Academy), nominated Best international film. German Film Awards 2015 - films of 2014 nominated Best film, Best Supporting Actor (Gert Voss), Best Screenplay (Elisabeth Bartel, Giulio Ricciarelli), Best soundtrack (Niki Reiser, Sebastian Pille).

The Auschwitz trial began in 1963, 211 survivors of the Auscwitz concentration and extermination camp told their story. In the best trial in the history of the Federal Republic, 19 members of the SS who had served in Auscwitz appeared. 17 of the accused were convicted, during the 20 months that the trial lasted the accused did not show any repentance. Fritz Bauer died in 1978 from a myocardial infarction. Josef Mengeles lived in Brazil until his death in 1979, he died of a stroke while swimming. The trial marked a milestone in the history of the German Federal Republic, the crimes of the Nazi era could no longer be silenced. The film is taught to Attorney General Frtz Bauer, prosecutors Joachin Kugler, George Vogel, Gerhard Wiese and journalist Thomas Gnielka.

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". And that's precisely what the main character is facing in his quest of uncovering the crimes Germany committed during WWII.

This film poses a not very often portrayed link in the chain of events during and following WWII. 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. It deals with the topic in a very non sensational way. Awful crimes are not portrayed too visually and yet the film manages to transmit the severity of those. It also explores the German people's psyche after the war and the motivation behind covering up what happened.

The cinematography is quite nice and the music fits the time and setting.

A downside to the film is its romantic relationship between the main character and his love interest. It was hard to connect to their relationship and to her. Her relevance for the story was not very clear as well. Also the screenplay felt off at times. Whenever a character had a monologue it was very catching and filled with emotions one could connect to. Unfortunately it failed in delivering meaningful conversations. They were most of the time superficial and felt stiff.

All in all it was a very interesting film with a relevant message but quite a few downsides in delivery. 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.