Labyrinth of Lies (2015)

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The movie is surprisingly subdued in its pacing, its characterizations, and its go-for-broke sensibilities.

Blistering performances.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

"Labyrinth of Lies" from 2014 is a German film about a young attorney, Johann Radmann (Alexander Fehling) (a combination of three people in reality) in 1958 who decides to go after the bakers, the teachers, the everyday workers who were enforcers of some kind at Auschwitz, a place not many people, including Radmann, had heard of. And when he learns from a friend (Johannes Krisch) who was there how he lost his twin girls (a gutwrenching scene) Johann becomes obsessed with Josef Mengele and is determined to bring him to justice. His mentor and boss, the attorney general Fritz Bauer (a real person) has wanted to do this for years and puts Radmann in charge of the investigation. Bauer is played by the late Gert Voss, who was obviously quite ill when he made this movie. Bauer is a solid presence who knows too well the difficulties his young charge will face and tries to help him.We've seen the basic premise of this film many times- the young, idealistic man taking on the bureaucracy and the stonewallers who insist that they need to "draw the line" regarding the war experience and forget about it. "They were soldiers," "It was war," he is told. But did being soldiers and being at war mean that they treated their prisoners sadistically, starved them, shot them for minor offenses, and herded them into gas chambers?For the young people, underneath it all is a fear as they learn about the atrocities - what was their fathers' involvement in the war? Is it true that nearly everyone was a member of the Nazi Party? Radmann finds this unacceptable, not realizing that being a member of the party in no way meant you accepted their principles, you just didn't have a choice.One interesting aspect of the film was that while some atrocities were described, nothing was shown, and somehow it was all the more devastating. The film had one big problem, and that was the romantic subplot that did not contribute at all to the movie and, in fact, cluttered it.It took the Germans quite a while to accept what happened, although deep down I think many suspected and were uneasy. Radmann believes, "To remain silent is to poison our democracy." I suppose it's a bit like trying to live a normal life after an unacknowledged trauma happens. At some point, one must face it.The acting is emotional and powerful -- Fehling does a nice job of going from an attorney dealing with traffic violations to a passionate man who wants justice. All of the acting is excellent.Someone on this board said that Phoenix was a better film about post-World War II in Germany. It is a better film but quite different from "Labyrinth of Lies." It deals with the immediate aftermath of World War II. It is much more involving - but I give Labyrinth of Lies high marks.

Based on the true story of a young Public Prosecutor from Frankfurt named Johann Radmann (Alexander Fehling – 'Inglorious Basterds'). He encounters a survivor of Auschwitz and a journalist who want to bring the perpetrators of the atrocities that took place there to trial. The problem is that Germany seems to not want to rake over the coals of the past and there are former Nazi's everywhere who just don't care.What follows are the travails he and his friends go through in order to do something, try to build a case and wake the German people from their wilful apathy towards the war. We also have his personal life and that of those around him and who are swept up in the investigation.This is an extremely well made film, the story is completely gripping and I loved the period detail too. It does not sugar coat what took place but is also not horrific in terms of the graphic abuse that sadly occurred, especially at the hands of Mengele and co. It is very moving in places and features some truly excellent performances especially Fehling and his love interest Friedrike Becht ('Hannah Arendt')who plays Marlene – it is in German with very good subtitles and runs for 123 minutes and is one that is very easy to recommend indeed.

Good movie but was slow at times. Beautiful cinematography with good acting by the lead. Was lil tough to watch at times especially the narration by the survivors of the holocaust. Basically its a post holocaust movie. Nowhere close to Justice at Nuremberg but a good attempt. The movie shud hav focused more on the trial n more on the psychology of the perpetrators/Nazis. Instead it became more of an investigation/procedural film. The movies length was a bit short for such an important subject. The story is fascinating. The scene where they narrate how a small boy with an apple was smashed against a wall by a nazi, made my eyes tearful. I was surprised at the widespread ignorance about the holocaust in Germany jus one generation aft the war. It's directed by Giulio Ricciarelli. He did a good job considering this is his first full length film. Good acting by the lead actor Alexander Fehling (Inglorius basterds,Homeland-TV series)

The English title "Labyrinth of Lies" should rather be a direct translation from the German title which is more among the lines "Labyrinth of Silence". And that's precisely what the main character is facing in his quest of uncovering the crimes Germany committed during WWII.This film poses a not very often portrayed link in the chain of events during and following WWII. People in Germany are used to dealing openly with the crimes committed during WWII to the point where the time when it was not like that is barley remembered. It deals with the topic in a very non sensational way. Awful crimes are not portrayed too visually and yet the film manages to transmit the severity of those. It also explores the German people's psyche after the war and the motivation behind covering up what happened.The cinematography is quite nice and the music fits the time and setting.A downside to the film is its romantic relationship between the main character and his love interest. It was hard to connect to their relationship and to her. Her relevance for the story was not very clear as well. Also the screenplay felt off at times. Whenever a character had a monologue it was very catching and filled with emotions one could connect to. Unfortunately it failed in delivering meaningful conversations. They were most of the time superficial and felt stiff.All in all it was a very interesting film with a relevant message but quite a few downsides in delivery. It feels like the big screen is a little too big for this film but it is quite a nice TV film and a good starter to get into post war history.