a major film in the history of cinema

The film " Shoah " by Frenchman Claude Lanzmann, who died Thursday in Paris, has entered the history of cinema, by its duration (9H30), its form (no archive footage ) and its purpose: to tell " the unspeakable ", the systematic extermination of the Jews by the Nazis.

The word " Shoah " – it appears in the Bible and means in Hebrew " Annihilation " – has now become established in everyday language. " The Shoah has been called everywhere, this name has supplanted 'Holocaust', 'Genocide' or 'Final Solution' ", according to the director.

Thousands of articles, d Studies, debates were devoted to this documentary, released in 1985 and repeatedly rewarded – notably by a César of honor in 1986 -, seen by tens of millions of spectators throughout the world, taught in schools. " Shoah " deals only with the extermination camps in Poland (which has long been denounced by the authorities of that country): Chelmno, Treblinka, Auschwitz-Birkenau. He also narrates the process of eliminating the Warsaw Ghetto.

During ten filming campaigns, the filmmaker has methodically followed the footsteps of infamy, identifying places of genocide and listening to survivors and camp witnesses. Few sequences have been replayed or prepared. Claude Lanzmann was sometimes forced to use a false name, false papers and a hidden camera to interrogate former Nazis: "' Shoah' is, in many ways, a police investigation, and even a western in some parts "

This film of" history in the present ", according to him, does not include any comments of experts or historians. " There is no voiceover to say what to think, to link the scenes from one another to another.These facilities, specific to what is clbadically called a documentary, are not allowed in 'Shoah' "he explained,"

It was a long-term adventure, since the preparation and filming took place from 1974 to 1981 and the editing (there were 350 hours of shooting!) lasted almost 5 years.

" I never stopped fighting with and for this film, which was a relay race of twelve interminable years I had the strength and the madness to take my time, that's what I'm most proud of, I only obeyed my own law ", explained Claude Lanzmann, in reference to various problems (including financial) encountered.

Amongst several scenes of anthology, figure that of this hairdresser, face full frame, telling with hardly he cut the women's hair before entering the gas chamber. Without being able to tell them what was waiting for them, on pain of going to death with them. Claude Lanzmann looked for this man for years, before finding him in Israel and having the idea to film him telling his story … in a hair salon near Tel Aviv. " I have often been criticized for my sadism in questions, which is false, it is a fraternal birth, the tears of the hairdresser are for me the seal of truth ," the director said.

The film was presented in 2012 in Turkey. According to the project Aladdin badociation (which campaigns for a rapprochement between Jews and Muslims), this is the first time it was broadcast on a public channel in a Muslim country.

Claude Lanzmann received a Bear d honor at the Berlinale in 2013 for all of his work, a reward that of course had a particular impact: I always " thought that 'Shoah' would deeply help the Germans to confront this terrible past ".