Night and Fog Movie Review

The film, Night and Fog by Alain Resnais was a film that looks back on World War II to describe the lives of the Holocaust victims. These victims were placed in concentration camps around Poland, which is where this movie was filmed at. To show the very horrible things that were done to the victims of the Holocaust, many different types of camera shots are shown. One type of camera shot that is shown throughout the film is the camera as an observer. This is photos that are taken during the Holocaust. These will appear as black and white photos/films that show a lot of detail. The other type of camera shot is the camera as a witness. These are photos/films that are taken in the present day while producing the film. 

Night and Fog is a very thought-out film that gives detail as to what happened during the Holocaust. I enjoyed the film and was amazed at all the detail that was given. Some of the photos/films were very vivid and sad to see. For example, in the film at 27:56, the British use heavy machinery to push the victims of the Holocaust that didn’t make it, into a hole in the ground. As the bodies are pushed, they roll on top of one another, breaking the limbs of so many of them. This film was black and white, meaning it was a camera as an observer film. It was a very disturbing film for one to see that shows how inhuman they treated the victims of the Holocaust. Many more photos/films were shown throughout Night and Fog that had just as much detail and meaning. The part of Night and Fog that I thought was the most important, was the ending. Those who pretend all this happened only once, at a certain time and at a certain place” (Night and Fog 31:22). This quote has so much meaning behind it that expresses that most people don’t believe that this could happen again. However, history repeats itself. I believe that this is the most important part because it is the entire meaning behind the film. Night and Fog was created to show people what once happened. 

This film was created to make sure everyone knows the history in hopes that it will never happen again. All the details in Night and Fog make it very disturbing and yet very historical which is what makes it such a great film.