Amen. (2002)

Director:

Costa-Gavras

Writers:

Costa-Gavras (writer)
Jean-Claude Grumberg (writer)

Release Date:

27 February 2002 (France)

Genre:

Drama | War

Plot:

During WWII SS officer Kurt Gerstein tries to inform Pope Pius XII about Jews being sent to concentration camps. Young Jesuit priest Riccardo Fontana gives him a hand.

Plot Keywords:

SS | Priest | Jesuit | Pope | SS Officer

Awards:

2 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

Ulrich Tukur	...	Kurt Gerstein
Mathieu Kassovitz	...	Riccardo Fontana
Ulrich Mühe	...	Doctor
Michel Duchaussoy	...	Cardinal
Ion Caramitru	...	Count Fontana
Marcel Iures	...	Pope
Friedrich von Thun	...	Gerstein's Father
Antje Schmidt	...	Mrs. Gerstein
Hanns Zischler	...	Grawitz
Sebastian Koch	...	Höss
Erich Hallhuber	...	Von Rutta
Burkhard Heyl	...	Director
Angus MacInnes	...	Tittman
Bernd Fischerauer	...	Bishop von Galen
Pierre Franckh	...	Pastor Wehr

Also Known As:

Amen (France)
Der Stellvertreter (Germany)
Eyewitness
Le vicaire (France) (working title)

Runtime:

132 min

Country:

France | Germany | Romania

Language:

English | French | Italian | German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Finland:K-13 | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Germany:12 | Netherlands:12 | Peru:14 | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating) | Spain:13 | UK:PG | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Bucharest, Romania

Company:

Canal+

Trivia:

The movie is based on a play by German playwright Rolf Hochhuth which started a lot of heated discussions and arguments after its first release in 1963. It even caused some diplomatic tensions.

Goofs:

Factual errors: In one of the scenes they say that the Treblinka camp is out of gas, referring to Zyklon B. Treblinka didn't use Zyklon B, instead they used carbon monoxide.

Quotes:

Karl: In these heroic times, have you acquired some title or some kind of rank?
Kurt Gerstein: Lieutenant of the Waffen-SS.
Karl: Go to the SS Transportation Department. Thanks for your visit.

The Eyes of God

The challenge for Kurt Gerstein after the war, in the hands of the allies, and for Costa-Gavras in this film, is to convince us that he, Kurt Gerstein S.S. officer, was bravely acting as the "eyes of God" in watching the holocaust unfold before his eyes. It is hard to believe that a man of conscience could actively participate in something he found so entirely heinous. But the amazing work of Gavras and Ulrich Tukur who plays Gerstein succeeds. It is very difficult to play a noble and virtuous man and not become a saintly characature. Tukur succeeds in rounding out a believable character who inspires us to believe in man's innate goodness. Indeed Tukur pretty much has to carry this film and he does. Kudos. Mathieu Kassovitz as the young Jesuit priest is not as strong but his character is less central to the story.

This film is very powerful. In it's veiled presentation of the holocaust it manages to convey the horror with as much emotional impact as any previous film dealing with this dark history. The real sorrow, for me, is to watch our protagonists struggle believing that "if only the world knew" there would be an outpouring of outrage that would put a stop to the atrocities. Unfortunately these good men don't seem to grasp the darker side of human nature that can turn a blind eye. In the final chapter a brilliant plot twist brings home the horror in the most personal of ways to all of those Vatican "diplomats".

A powerful, horrible and beautiful film.