S-21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine

Filmmaker Rithy Panh draws a quietly devastating portrait of the horrors that followed the communist takeover of Cambodia by recreating the atmosphere of the notorious detention center of Tuol Sleng, codenamed S-21, located in suburban Phnom Penh. The complex of buildings--an abandoned school--is now a museum commemorating the 17,000 prisoners executed there between 1975-1979. After offering a very brief sketch of Pol Pot's takeover of the country, S-21 tries to comprehend the enormity of the dictator's genocidal policies by bringing back to the infamous site a couple survivors--most notably artist Vann Nath, who escaped death by painting portraits of Khmer Rouge officers--as well as a group of former guards, whom the soft-spoken yet insistent Nath questions about their actions, as they revisit their former routines in the now-empty rooms. Making use of the voluminous records and photos left behind by the now-defunct regime, the documentary makes abundantly clear the incredible brutality of a government whose leaders have largely escaped punishment and the rationalizations of those who were its instruments. S-21 moves very slowly and tends to be repetitive, but it also boasts a simmering intensity beneath its deceptively placid surface. Recommended, overall. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)[DVD Review--May 30, 2005--First Run Features, 101 min., not rated, $29.95--2003's S21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine's debuts on DVD at a sell-through price, with extras including an interview with director Rithy Panh (8 min.), a text biography of Panh, Human Rights Watch film notes, a “Cambodia: A Chronology” segment, and a trailer gallery. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a solid doc.]