Cheap Shoah: An Oral History of the Holocaust [All-Region] (DVD) (Claude Lanzmann) (Claude Lanzmann) Price

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Customer Reviews of Shoah: An Oral History of the Holocaust [All-Region]

Outstanding, and the best I've seen in video
This Lenten season, I've taken up the topic of the Holocaust for a fuller review than the stuff that generally comes out on PBS (though I do seem to recall them running this very film at one time or another). Without any actual photographs or film clips from the 1940's, Lanzmann gives us the best portrait through the oral histories that I've yet to encounter in the visual media. It was a bit annoying at times to wait for the interpreter to translate languages such as Polish into French, but the German part had substantial impact, since I claim to "speak German" and wish to study it more. I've been through the whole film as in the 4-disc set, and have started doing the separate discs again. Especially interesting to me was the extensive coverage of central and eastern European rail systems, with the fine assortments of how they looked in 1985. I want to take another trip to that part of the world and see what it's like today (e.g., is there still such use of horses in Poland?). <
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>What gets me the most, I think, is that my overall impression of the way Europeans live is as a much more earnest, sincere and authentic style than some of the phoniness we put up with in America, but then they got into all of this, didn't they? Mass delusion, persuasion and compulsion seem possible anywhere among humanity.

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why pay more?
I was a bit hesitant to by this particular Korean make. But the risk paid off. The picture is excellent and the subtitles--English, Korean, etc.--are easily removeable and switchable. So don't get ripped off by those who have you over a barrel at $149.00?! <
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>As for the film itself: it is one of those rare gems that proves less is more. The only minor complaint I have is the mellowdrama created during a hidden camera interview with an SS man; the director cuts back and forth to the van outside that is stealthily recording the interview. That is the only brief heavy handedness in what is otherwise a masterpiece.