Recently reissued with distracting new narration supplied by Liev Schreiber, this U.S. War Department documentary nonetheless remains an incredibly valuable and still relevant historical document. The introductory footage of European citizens emerging from the horrors of World War II is both beautiful and shocking, but the film is not a tale of recovery and rebuilding: it is a tale of justice renewed and restored. Blending footage shot during the trial of the major war criminals under the jurisdiction of the International Military Tribunal with Nazi-shot film recovered, ironically, by the OSS, the film provides a brief but damning summary of the crimes for which the suspects were charged. It is, in short, a bittersweet record of justice at its apex. Sixty years later, we live in very different times, when it is our own rulers who have committed crimes and spit in the face of international and national law and common decency. Nuremberg is a humbling reminder that it is incumbent on us all to do what we can, no matter how seemingly insignificant, to put our bodies upon the gears and try to stop the odious machine from operating. It is not enough to merely claim to be a good German, or a good American, or a good Briton; to look forward and not look back--to do so is to be complicit in our countries' crimes. If the reissue of this film can convince even a single person that the path of least resistance should not be taken, then the struggle for peace and freedom will have been well served. Kudos to Sandra Schulberg, daughter of director Stuart Schulberg, for restoring her father's film so all may see what true justice looks like.
Review of Nürnberg und seine Lehre
