God on Trial (TV 2008)

Awaiting their inevitable deaths at one of the worst concentration camps, a group of Jews make a rabbinical court to decide whether G-d has went against the holy covenant and if He is the one guilty for their suffering.

Director:

Andy De Emmony

Writer:

Frank Cottrell Boyce

Stars:

Joseph Muir, Josef Altin, Ashley Artus

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Joseph Muir	...	Kapo (as Joseph Alessi)
Josef Altin	...	Isaac
Ashley Artus	...	Ricard
Alexi Kaye Campbell	...	Doctor
Dominic Cooper	...	Moche
Lorcan Cranitch	...	Blockaltester
Stephen Dillane	...	Schmidt
Rupert Graves	...	Mordechai
François Guétary	...	Jacques (as Francois Guetary)
David de Keyser	...	Hugo
Agnieszka Liggett	...	Tour Guide
Louise Mardenborough	...	Emily
Eddie Marsan	...	Lieble
André Oumansky	...	Jacob
Blake Ritson	...	Idek

Storyline

Wondering about the meaning and modalities of their triage, presumably to live or burn, Jewish Auschwitz barrack mates start to debate on how or why God can allow (his) people to suffer such fatal misery, which even further divides a devout father and his liberal son. They eventually form a Thora court, which hears theological argumentation as well as practical considerations.

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Plot Keywords:

jewish | auschwitz | prisoner | debate | barracks | 

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Details

Country:

UK

Release Date:

9 November 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Auschwitzin vangit

Filming Locations:

Glasgow, Strathclyde, Scotland, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hat Trick Productions, BBC Scotland

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Hat Trick has employed a rabbi to consult on the script.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Tour Guide: Unfortunately our admission is not inclusive in your tour price, so sorry you must pay. But, um, the good news it's only 10 zlotas, so not so very bad.

User Reviews

Worthwhile but wordy

I watched his TV drama with interest and felt as though I understood a little bit more about Jews and their beliefs.Based on a true story,it tells of imprisoned Jews in Auschwitz awaiting death and deciding to have a trial to decide if God is guilty for their living hell.It is pretty compelling and also a history lesson as various men argue their case for or against God.I did struggle at times to follow the stories the men told as they related moments from Jewish history but there can be no doubt that there was a lot of research done.

There is an impressive cast including Jack Shepherd,Stellan Skarsgard and Stephen Dillane.All of the cast act their roles very well and special mention must go to Eddie Marsen as Lieble who tells the heartbreaking story of his three boys being taken from him by Nazis and giving him the impossible choice of saving one of them.Very impressive also is Antony Sher as Akiba.He says nothing for well over an hour but it is well worth the wait when he decides to speak.What he has to say comes as a shock and pretty much decides the outcome of the trial.

This is a well made drama.Perhaps there is a too much to take in and it is a bit too long.But it does show the agonies of men nearing certain death,desperate to make some sense of the horror they have lived through.