

His father murdered more than a million Jews at Auschwitz. She survived the camp against all odds. 80 years later, they come face to face.
DocumentaryHistoryWar1h 43m
7.2
TMDB
While Hans Jurgen Höss enjoyed a happy childhood in the family villa at Auschwitz, Jewish prisoner Anita Lasker-Wallfisch was trying to survive the notorious concentration camp. At the heart of this film is the historic and inspiring moment – eight decades later – when the two come face-to-face. This is the first time the descendant of a major war criminal meets a survivor in such a private and intimate setting, Anita’s London living room. Together with their children, Kai Höss and Maya Lasker-Wallfisch, the four protagonists explore their very different hereditary burdens.

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2 reviews · 1 fan
1 fresh · 0 rotten
To be honest, I was a little disappointed with this documentary. Occasionally using some truly gruesome archive footage, we are introduced to Hans Höss, the son of the the man who not just commanded the infamous Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination camp, but who was largely instrumental in creating the complex in the first place. Loosely using a narration from the autobiography he wrote whilst awaiting trial after the war, we learn a little of the politics that drove this efficient administrator to build a facility that ended up killing ten thousand people a day, whilst seemingly silent at home with his family about just what his day job actually was. Meantime, in London, we meet survivor Anita Lasker-Wallfisch. She's a remarkably stoic character who believes that there is little to be gained by raking over old coals. This is a constant source of chagrin for her daughter Maya, who seems to be living a life that sees her suffer vicariously. It's as if she believes that she has inherited some of her mother's fears and trauma and it's nigh on impossible for her to find closure. To that end, she is determined to reclaim her German citizenship and leave the UK to live in her motherland despite not having a word of German. The gist of the remainder of the film sets out to challenge just how much Hans (he was around four years old at the time) may have known about his father's activities.…
Title
The Commandant's Shadow
Released
May 29, 2024
Rated
PG-13
Region of Origin
United Kingdom, United States of America
Original Audio
English
Runtime
1h 43m
Status
Released
Studios
Snowstorm Productions, Creators