Harlan – In the Shadow of Jew Süss
Encyclopedia
Harlan – In the Shadow of Jew Süss is a 2008 documentary
film by German director Felix Moeller about one of the most notorious Nazi German
filmmakers, Veit Harlan
and his family. It focuses on the "wildly varying attitudes of Harlan's children and grandchildren", and how they struggle even today with the legacy of their ancestor's work.
The documentary also explores Veit Harlan
's motivations for making Jew Süss
, a film that The New York Times
has called "perhaps the most notorious anti-Semitic movie ever made". Veit Harlan
was the only artist from the Nazi era to be charged with war crime
s.
The film uses "never-before-seen archival footage, unearthed film excerpts, rare home movies and new interviews".
It is distributed in the U.S. by Zeitgeist Films
in 2010.
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
film by German director Felix Moeller about one of the most notorious Nazi German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
filmmakers, Veit Harlan
Veit Harlan
Veit Harlan was a German film director and actor.-Life and career:Harlan was born in Berlin. After studying under Max Reinhardt, he first appeared on the stage in 1915 and, after World War I, worked in the Berlin stage. In 1922 he married Jewish actress and cabaret singer Dora Gerson; the couple...
and his family. It focuses on the "wildly varying attitudes of Harlan's children and grandchildren", and how they struggle even today with the legacy of their ancestor's work.
The documentary also explores Veit Harlan
Veit Harlan
Veit Harlan was a German film director and actor.-Life and career:Harlan was born in Berlin. After studying under Max Reinhardt, he first appeared on the stage in 1915 and, after World War I, worked in the Berlin stage. In 1922 he married Jewish actress and cabaret singer Dora Gerson; the couple...
's motivations for making Jew Süss
Jud Süß (1940 film)
Jud Süß is an antisemitic propaganda film produced in 1940 by Terra Filmkunst at the behest of Joseph Goebbels. The movie was directed by Veit Harlan, who wrote the screenplay with Eberhard Wolfgang Möller and Ludwig Metzger, and starred Ferdinand Marian and Harlan's wife Kristina Söderbaum.The...
, a film that The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
has called "perhaps the most notorious anti-Semitic movie ever made". Veit Harlan
Veit Harlan
Veit Harlan was a German film director and actor.-Life and career:Harlan was born in Berlin. After studying under Max Reinhardt, he first appeared on the stage in 1915 and, after World War I, worked in the Berlin stage. In 1922 he married Jewish actress and cabaret singer Dora Gerson; the couple...
was the only artist from the Nazi era to be charged with war crime
War crime
War crimes are serious violations of the laws applicable in armed conflict giving rise to individual criminal responsibility...
s.
The film uses "never-before-seen archival footage, unearthed film excerpts, rare home movies and new interviews".
It is distributed in the U.S. by Zeitgeist Films
Zeitgeist Films
Zeitgeist Films is an American independent film distributor based in New York City founded in 1988 by co-Presidents Nancy Gerstman and Emily Russo. Films distributed by Zeitgeist are strongly auteur-driven by directors such as Christopher Nolan, Guy Maddin, Atom Egoyan, Todd Haynes, Nuri Bilge...
in 2010.
Crew
- Written and directed by Felix Moeller
- Cinematography – Ludolph Meyer
- Sound – Martin Noweck
- Film editing – Anette Fleming
- Original music – Marco Hertenstein
- Narrator – August Zirner
- Producers – Amelie Larscha, Felix Moeller