The Invisibles

In 1943, Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels declared Berlin to be “free of Jews.” But in reality at least 7,000 Jews were hiding in the German capital, with 1,700 managing to escape Nazi detection and survive the Allied invasion. Claus Räfle’s film features archival interviews with four Jewish Berliners who survived—Cioma Schönhaus, Eugen Friede, Ruth Arndt, and Hanni Lévy—although they never crossed paths during wartime. But rather than take a straightforward documentary approach, Räfle creates elaborate dramatic re-enactments of each survivor’s story. Cioma (Max Mauff) finds an underground niche as a forger, where his talents earn him black market profits. Hanni (Alice Dwyer) dyes her hair blonde and freely walks through the city, arousing no suspicion from the Nazi authorities. Ruth (Ruby O. Fee) dresses in black and pretends to be in war widow’s garb, ultimately landing a job as a maid for a Nazi Party member. And Eugen (Aaron Altaras) is initially protected because his father was Christian, but later eludes capture and takes shelter with a Communist family who are active in the underground. The re-enactments are emotionally harrowing, with the ensemble cast delivering solid performances, and the real-life stories from the survivors are powerful and eloquent. Highly recommended. (P. Hall)