Labyrinth of Lies

In the aftermath of World War II, Germans tried to forget the atrocities of Hitler's Third Reich, which resulted in a postwar generation that either never heard of Auschwitz or dismissed it as American propaganda. In 1958, Johann Radmann (Alexander Fehling)—a junior prosecutor in Frankfurt—becomes intrigued when an investigative journalist, Thomas Gnielka (Andre Szymanski), reports that an artist, Simon Kirsch (Johannes Krisch), has recognized a schoolteacher as the former SS guard who brutalized him. Naïve Radmann immediately encounters resistance to his inquiries. Prosecutor General Fritz Bauer (Gert Voss) says that it's a lost cause because he'll need proof of murder, as all other war crimes have expired under the statute of limitations (he adds that the entire German civil service is filled with former Nazis). Nevertheless, with Gnielka's help, Radmann launches an investigation that will encompass 8,000 Auschwitz workers. The odds are daunting as Radmann views U.S. Army Document Center archives in Wiesbaden, where records of 600,000 suspects are haphazardly stored. Driven by shame and guilt, partially involving his own family, Radmann becomes obsessive in his arduous research. Eventually, 22 former Nazis were rounded up and tried for murder, none of whom were repentant or apologetic. Unlike the famous Nuremburg trials, the Auschwitz trials of 1963-65 were prosecuted by Germans against fellow countrymen. Writer-director Giulio Ricciarelli's Labyrinth of Lies also features a romantic subplot involving an enterprising dressmaker (Friederike Becht) and an attempt to capture the elusive Dr. Josef Mengele. An engrossing, enlightening drama, this is highly recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Giulio Ricciarelli and star Alexander Fehling, a Q&A at the LA Jewish Film Festival with Ricciarelli and Fehling (43 min.), deleted scenes (6 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is a bonus UltraViolet copy of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a fine historical drama.] (S. Granger)