There are a lot of very important lessons to be learned here that were not previously examined with studies on the Holocaust before. It's very easy for people to accept the pictures of the evil Nazi zombie like character, but much harder to accept that "seemingly" ordinary people can be so easily swayed into committing mass murder of innocents on a global scale with just the slightest nudge. As the documentary displays they even had a choice not to without punishment. This destroys the common myth that they had no choice.
The documentary does a fine job of simplifying the psychological phenomenon at play of the perpetrators. It is mind blowing and extremely concerning how the human brain can find ways to justify even the worst acts a human could even commit. I do also appreciate that it added that people need to be more equipped to be aware of the forces trying to manipulate their thinking.
A weak spot in the documentary was possibly using too much time repeating other fairly known facts and using up valuable time that could be focused more on their more recent findings. At the same time, these historical recaps could be necessary to helping remind people of critical information. Clearly with genocides reoccurring people can never be reminded of the history enough.
I thought the parts with Benjamin Ferencz were absolutely fascinating. It was amazing to be able to hear his perspective from the events that unfolded at the trial.
A final thing I will say about the documentaries conclusion is that it relies too heavily on what the Germans said after they were caught to justify their behaviors. What someone tells interviewers or in a court of law why they committed their behaviour does not necessarily prove that was what was going through their minds when they committed the acts. If their brains were able to justify doing the acts, of course their brains now are trying to spin what they did to appear in what they hope is a better way than stating they simply just hated Jews. By manipulating the story in a way that suggests that any ordinary person would do what they did allows them to feel better about their actions . In accepting their explanations for their behavior it can be providing greater relief for these murders conscience than they deserve.
I would have liked if they'd stressed more that as an individual you always have a choice. It is a bit defeatist in suggesting that the best we can do is to try to be aware of external forces operating on us. At the end of the day , we should be building a society with people willing to stand up to difficult choices with the courage of their convictions.
Overall, certainly a worthwhile watch.
