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MOVIES / ON DVD / AMEN
Amen

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Amen (2003)

67%
75%
68%
N/A
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N/A
67 %
Reviews Counted: 49 Fresh: 33  Rotten:16 Average Rating: 6.3/10
Runtime: 2 hrs 10 mins
Synopsis:
Filmmaker Costa-Gavras (MAD CITY, MUSIC BOX, MISSING) has a reputation for controversial political cinema, and he does not fail to raise eyebrows with AMEN. Focusing on the Vatican's unwillingness to oppose the Holocaust, and two men who tried to change the system from within, AMEN is... [More]
Filmmaker Costa-Gavras (MAD CITY, MUSIC BOX, MISSING) has a reputation for controversial political cinema, and he does not fail to raise eyebrows with AMEN. Focusing on the Vatican's unwillingness to oppose the Holocaust, and two men who tried to change the system from within, AMEN is adapted from the play THE REPRESENTATIVE by Rolf Hochhuth. It is based on a true story about officer Kurt Gerstein (Ulrich Tukur), a Nazi soldier who moved up the SS ranks by devising a chemical method to purify soldiers' drinking water. Gerstein is unaware of the horrors of the concentration camps until he is recruited by "The Doctor" (Ulrich Muhe) to adapt the same chemical for use in the gas chambers. Though Gerstein is overwhelmed by the reality of the impending massacre, he does not turn a blind eye. He informs the Swedes, the German Protestant Church, and even the Vatican. But he is sent away, dismissed, and otherwise silenced by all but the tenacious Father Riccardo Fontana (Mathieu Kassovitz), a fictitious character based on a number of priests who fought against the Holocaust. Father Riccardo takes life-threatening risks in a fruitless effort to convince the cardinal (Michel Duchaussoy) and the Pope (Marcel Iures) to rise above their fears of Nazi retribution. [Less]

Genre: Foreign Films

Starring: Mathieu Kassovitz, Ulrich Tukur, Ulrich Muhe, Michael Duchaussoy, Marcel Iures

Director: Costa Gavras
Producer: Claude Berri
Screenwriter: Costa Gavras, Jean Claude-Grumberg

DVD Info

Release:

Dec 8, 2003

[DVD Details]

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Keep Case
  • Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85

Additional Release Material:

  • Making-of
  • Featurette - 1. AMEN and THE DEPUTY Scene Comparison
  • Trailers

Interactive Features:

  • Scene Access
  • Interactive Menus

Text/Photo Galleries:

  • Pressbook

Reviews

 
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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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12/30/06 08:14 AM
Empire Magazine
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06/24/06 04:26 AM
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
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12/15/03 05:03 PM
Christopher Tookey
Daily Mail [UK]
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09/13/02 08:03 AM
Guardian [UK]
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09/13/02 08:03 AM
FilmFour.com
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A handsomely shot but stolid drama.

Full Review | Comment
09/13/02 08:03 AM
Geoffrey Macnab
Sight and Sound
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This is not the place to debate the Vatican's role, but Costa-Gavras offers a most persuasive study of its shortcomings.

Full Review | Comment
09/13/02 08:03 AM
Neil Smith
BBC
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No review available.

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09/29/07 07:53 PM
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com
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No review available.

| Comment
08/15/05 01:41 PM
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
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a sputtering, wet firecracker

Full Review | Comment
09/23/03 11:41 AM
Chris Barsanti
Filmcritic.com
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Though Costa-Gavras brings nothing new to the table about the Holocaust, he puts another nail down in the argument that the world could have acted but didn't because of indifference.

Full Review | Comment
08/27/03 12:40 PM
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews
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Though such elements might chip away somewhat at Amen’s seriousness of intent, they do add fire to the stimulating drama.

Full Review | Comment
08/12/03 08:52 PM
Eric Henderson
Slant Magazine
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It's so inert, so slow-moving that it seems at least twice as long as it really is, and it manages to waste a potentially fascinating premise.

Full Review | Comment
08/01/03 04:24 PM
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
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Costa-Gavras often shortchanges the story's inherent drama for talky and strident speechifying.

Full Review | Comment
08/01/03 08:53 AM
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune
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Costa-Gavras deserves credit for staying the course; in a time when most European film directors are wringing their hands, he's still pointing fingers.

Full Review | Comment
07/25/03 06:02 PM
Terry Lawson
Detroit Free Press
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Extremely heavy-handed, almost comically repetitious, and way too long.

Full Review | Comment
07/16/03 05:05 PM
Jon Popick
Planet Sick-Boy
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Tukur's performance is the centerpiece of the movie; it's a wonderful mixture of outrage and swiftly disappearing naivete.

Full Review | Comment
06/27/03 02:00 PM
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
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Less a gripping drama than a stimulating bit of polemic.

Full Review | Comment
05/29/03 12:13 PM
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion
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Costa-Gavras' political thrillers used to jab and thrust with lethal efficiency. This one just pounds against a heavy bag, huffing and puffing all the way.

Full Review | Comment
05/28/03 05:03 PM
Gene Seymour
Newsday
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A movie that suggests the Holocaust may be an endless source of absorbing, heartbreaking dramas.

Full Review | Comment
05/09/03 02:38 PM
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press
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