German Concentration Camps Factual Survey
A lost masterpiece of British documentary cinema from 1945
On the 29th September 1945, the incomplete rough cut of a brilliant documentary about concentration camps was viewed at the MOI in London. For five months, Sidney Bernstein had led a small team – which included Stewart McAllister, Richard Crossman and Alfred Hitchcock – to complete the film from hours of shocking footage. Unfortunately, this ambitious Allied project to create a feature-length visual report that would damn the Nazi regime and shame the German people into acceptance of Allied occupation had missed its moment. Even in its incomplete form (available since 1984) the film was immensely powerful, generating an awed hush among audiences. But now, complete to six reels, this faithfully restored and definitive version produced by IWM, is being compared with Alain Resnais’ Night and Fog (1955).
Directed by Sidney Bernstein · Written by Colin Wills
Where to Watch
Streaming
Cast
-
Jasper Britton Narrator - Jane Wells Self
- David Cesarani Self
- Anne Fleming Self
-
Adolf Hitler Self (archive footage) -
Alfred Hitchcock Self (archive footage)
Make it a double feature
2h 36m together
German Concentration Camps Factual Survey
Rope
Both from Sidney Bernstein.
