As with many films that feature in it, I probably would never have known about or seen this French film if it did not feature in the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, and that is the only reason I probably would watch it. Basically this documentary focuses on the German Nazi invasion of France during the Second World War, 1940 to 1944, due to the French Vichy government collaborating. Throughout the film director Marcel Ophüls interviews the politicians involved with the situation, the former resistance fighters, the former German Nazis who were involved, the religious types and other people affected by the invasion. The film is split into two parts, both two hours, "The Collapse" and "The Choice", including many stock footage moments made during the time, and it concludes with the important interview with France's Prime Minister. I will admit that I did not understand all of what was being talked about during the interviews, and I did doze off a little bit in certain parts that were a bit boring, but the stock footage stuff is interesting enough, and the opinions of what was happening was alright, so overall it is a worthwhile political documentary. It was nominated the Oscar for Best Documentary, Features for Ophüls, and it won the BAFTA for Best Foreign TV Programme. Very good!
Review of The Sorrow and the Pity
