Impressively tackles the enduring dilemma inherent in dramatically depicting the enormous horror of the Nazi death camps, and meeting that challenge, oddly enough, in tacit admission of the very impossibility of that task.
The Ninth Day (2005)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted: 34
Fresh: 28
Rotten:6
Average Rating: 7.1/10
Consensus: Fueled by tension-filled performances and dialogue, this Holocaust film brings up morally ambiguous, thought-provoking issues.
Theatrical Release:May 27, 2005 Limited
Synopsis: Noted German director Volker Schlondorff's (THE TIN DRUM) highly compelling THE NINTH DAY provides a unique examination of historical events that took place during the Holocaust. Interned at the... Noted German director Volker Schlondorff's (THE TIN DRUM) highly compelling THE NINTH DAY provides a unique examination of historical events that took place during the Holocaust. Interned at the Dachau concentration camp near Munich in 1942 for anti-Nazi activities, Henri Kremer (Ulrich Matthes), an influential Luxembourg priest, endures terrible hardships along with thousands of his clergymen. Mysteriously, Kremer is released and sent back home to his family in Luxembourg for nine days. Upon his return, the local up-and-coming SS chief, Gebhardt (August Diehl) charges Kremer with a difficult assignment: convince the Bishop of Luxembourg to sign an agreement with the Nazis, thereby providing an integral link between Hitler in Berlin and the Pope in the Vatican. These scenes between the young, eager Gebhardt and the older, stoic Kremer simmer with friction and meaningful import. The great challenge is that the Bishop, like Kremer, opposes Nazi racial doctrine. Failure to execute within nine days means a return to Dachau for Kremer and the endangerment of the lives of his family and fellow clergyman at the camp. However, while success provides assured safety for all those people, it also would represent the ultimate corruption of his own faith. Based loosely on the memoirs of Jean Bernard, a real Catholic priest, THE NINTH DAY is a complex and thought-provoking film. [More]
Starring: Ulrich Matthes, August Diehl, Hilmar Thate, Bibiana Beglau
Starring: Ulrich Matthes, August Diehl, Hilmar Thate, Bibiana Beglau
Director: Volker Schlöndorff
Director: Volker Schlöndorff
Screenwriter: Volker Schlondorff, Eberhard Gorner, Andreas Pfluger
Producer: Juergen Haase
Studio: Kino International
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Reviews for The Ninth Day
This powerful film celebrates individual acts of conscience in barbarous times.
A morality thriller filled with heavy-handed allusions to the betrayal of Judas Iscariot.
This low-key, talky Holocaust drama doesn't try to pummel viewers with visuals of the Nazis' atrocities, but what is described in dialogue is tough enough.
Dark and depressing as the film is, it is thrilling to watch Henri work through his moral qualms as he battles the smooth tongue of evil.
It's no wonder Schlöndorff favors close-ups; with Mattes on screen, The Ninth Day gets right to its emotional core.
The dark, rotting interiors and sunless winter skies create a festering atmosphere of unexpiated guilt as Kremer ponders the question of how a decent man is to navigate the rivers of hell.
The Ninth Day is far from perfect, but is still thought-provoking and intriguing, a film that can begin its own kind of debate.
The film’s effectiveness hinges almost entirely on the performance of Matthes.
The film's star ... is Diehl, who perfectly captures the banality of evil inherent in Nazism. Villains are great characters, and Diehl's Gebhardt is terrific.
Schlondorff draws a telling picture of the ravished moral landscape that kept the wheels of the Holocaust turning.
A thoughtfully written drama of ideas with vivid performances by August Diehl and Ulrich Matthes.
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