One of the lesser-known yet deeply moving stories of the Holocaust involves the Warsaw, Poland city Zoo. When the Nazis invaded and bombed Warsaw, the family that managed this zoo chose to help upwards of 300 Jews and other refugees, housing them for days or even months in the zoo complex and their own home on the campus.
The documentary Of Animals and Men is a moving and quite interesting examination of this story, and brings to life a conscientious and determined couple and their young children. Dr.Jan and Antonina Zabinski, along with their son Ryszard (and later their daughter Teresa, although quite small) risked a great deal to help out Jewish people and other vulnerable individuals, after the zoo animal inventory had been liquidated.
This story has also been told in a 2007 book as well as a 2017 Hollywood film, The Zookeeper’s Wife. This documentary, largely in black-and-white, is not glossy but has a reserved, pensive air that can be appreciated as well. In fact, the vintage footage lends it a stirring, intimate quality which the mainstream film lacks.
Interspersed with the 1930s and 1940s film footage are interviews with a few of the people who survived due to the heroic efforts of the Zabinksi family, and particularly with their daughter Teresa, who reminisces about the conditions they faced, as well as the animals. It is a highly effective narrative.
There is also emphasis on how much genuine affection the family had for the animals in their keep, and how deeply they felt about their initial mission, to educate and entertain the people of Warsaw about the animal kingdom. The footage of various animals, from common to exotic, is enjoyable.
We see Warsaw’s residents flocking to the zoo and having light-hearted fun, which is contrasted with the destruction brought by the Nazi regime. The soldiers removed some of the animals to Germany, shot others for sport, and installed a large-scale pig farm on the zoo premises. When that was deemed inadequate (largely because the Nazis did not supply enough feed for the pigs) this too was abandoned.
Dr. Zabinski was able to travel in and out of the Warsaw Ghetto, where Jews lived in horrid conditions, and he helped out several. He and his wife also helped house runaway Jews in various parts of the emptied zoo. Some stayed just for a few days while others did for weeks and months.
We learn about how the refugees hid, as well as how the family coped with the awful conditions, and eventually Dr. Jan went to fight for Poland, while the mother and children left for a countryside school. Toward the end of the war, they returned and people from Warsaw pitched in, to rebuild parts of the zoo.
Topics touched upon in this documentary include World War Two, the Holocaust, Polish resistance, urban life in the 1930s and 1940s, the development of zoos in the 20th century, and more.
A few of the more intriguing segments include a description of how Antonina Zabinski would play the piano (often Chopin and Offenbach pieces) and would play a particular Offenbach piece, to warn those who were hiding in the zoo that danger was present. We also learn that the Zabinskis would give animal codenames to the refugees (pheasants, squirrels, etc.)
As much as we are “used to” watching Nazi horrors inflicted upon people, when we see that “one of the first bombs blew the polar bear pen to pieces,” it is a shocking moment. And to see that “Kasia the elephant was killed by shrapnel” is awful. The hunted animals are all innocent, and a reminder of the brutality of war. (It brought to mind the savage treatment of the zoo animals killed during the Yugoslavian war in the mid-1990s.)
One of the most thought-provoking quotes here include the frankly stated “Not everyone was willing to put their families in danger to save Jews.” This is certainly true; and in September 1965 this family was honored at Israel’s Yad Vashem, as Righteous Gentiles.
Who would benefit from and appreciate watching Of Animals and Men? Obvious groups would include high school and college students in courses on World History; Europe in the Twentieth Century; World War Two; Polish history; Jewish history and the Holocaust, among others. It could be shown in full or in segments. This might also be an unusual choice (shown in parts) to show students in a course on the history of zoology, the history of zoos and conservation science. The vintage footage of the animals and their caretakers is interesting and, frankly, quite endearing at times, quite sad at others.
This would also be a fitting documentary to show adults, in a program on WW2 or the Holocaust, or to a group focusing on Polish heritage. Actually, it would be a good fit for a Polish language course, since it has English subtitles.