The Birch-Tree Meadow (2003)
"La petite prairie aux bouleaux" (original title)

Myriam is a French Jew and a holocaust survivor. Sixty years after her imprisonment in Auschwitz she decides to do something daring. She returns there to finally confront her painful past. ... See full summary »

Director:

Marceline Loridan Ivens

Writers:

Marceline Loridan Ivens, Jeanne Moreau,

Stars:

Anouk Aimée, August Diehl, Marilu Marini

2 wins.

Cast

Credited cast:
Anouk Aimée	...	Myriam
August Diehl	...	Oskar
Marilu Marini	...	Suzanne
Zbigniew Zamachowski	...	Gutek
Claire Maurier	...	Ginette
Monique Couturier	...	Rachel
Nathalie Nerval	...	Vieille femme
Élise Otzenberger	...	Sarah
Keren Marciano	...	Nourith
Mireille Perrier	...	Femme à Auschwitz
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Artur Dziurman	...	Portier
Dorota Liliental
Anna Radwan

Storyline

Myriam is a French Jew and a holocaust survivor. Sixty years after her imprisonment in Auschwitz she decides to do something daring. She returns there to finally confront her painful past. At Auschwitz she meets another person who is looking for answers-a young German photographer Oskar, whose grandfather was an SS officer.

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Plot Keywords:

holocaust survivor | concentration camp

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

France Germany Poland

Language:

French Polish English

Release Date:

12 November 2003 (France)

Also Known As:

The Birch-Tree Meadow

Filming Locations:

Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp, Oswiecim, Malopolskie, Poland

Company Credits

Production Co:

Capi Films, Ciné Valse, Heritage Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min 91 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

User Reviews

Merveilleux!

Really outstanding, gripping movie - excellent in every way. I rarely give 10s or 1s, but this is definitely a 10.

The movie opens with an Auschwitz Survivor's Association meeting, a sort of "class reunion" type gathering where people are joking and reminiscing, etc. Quickly, the tone changes when wounds are opened and one woman returns to the scene of the crime, to relive it in her mind. She unexpectedly meets a young German man who is photographing the place, making an archaological record of it. He meets her and wants to join her trip down memory lane. It gets more and more interesting, with a great deal of psychological complexity throughout.

The only thing I would change is the ending. I won't say what happens, but she needed to remember the letter. It would have been better punctuated, as a story. Beautiful cinematography, writing, acting, the whole bit. Outstanding!