The Last Days (1998)

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

"The Last Days" is an exceptional film where five Hungarian Holocaust survivors tell their stories of their lives under the Nazis. Unlike other documentaries, these Jews did not experience any of this persecution until their country was annexed by the Germans in 1944. Their stories begin in 1944 and they recount the horrors of the Nazi concentration camps. Additionally, corroborating accounts from American soldiers and a German doctor working at Auschwitz were included as well as lots of archival photos and film. In many ways, this film is like going to a Holocaust center and listening to accounts of the survivors. Despite this film being very well made and quite moving, it's a case of preaching to the choir. In other words, those who are not insane or stupid and acknowledge that the Germans slaughtered millions will watch this film and appreciate it. Others probably won't watch it or else they'll dismiss the film as propaganda or an exaggeration or a conspiracy. Frankly, there isn't much you can do with this group. In the future, after successive generations have come and gone, this film will prove invaluable as a record of the Nazi horrors. But, since it only consists of five subjects, the film is naturally incomplete. Other films, such as "Shoah" and "Night and Fog" help to provide a more thorough story and are all worth seeing--but are also very draining. These are all exceptional films--just be sure you have some Kleenex handy as you watch.

The Last Days (1998) *** 1/2 (out of 4) Haunting, depressing and hard to watch documentary from director James Moll has five Hungarian Jews talking about their time before, during and after being placed in concentration camps at the end of WWII as Hitler was in the last days of murdering as many people as he could. THE LAST DAYS picked up the Best Documentary Oscar and there's no question that it's a very powerful movie, perfectly put together to show the horrors of these camps. Through the interviews and archival footage, most people will probably want to avoid this film simply because of how graphic the photos are and there's no question that it's incredibly depressing. Yes, there's a bit a hope thrown in for the inspiration to survive but this really doesn't take away the haunting images that we're shown. There are several times throughout the film that the five people break down crying while telling their stories and it really makes you wonder what it would be like having to go through life with these graphic images constantly in your head. Seeing people shot, burned to death, melt down into skeletons and worse is just something that no one should have to go through life witnessing and then having to live with. Another interesting segment deals with the eventual rescue by the American troops. We get to see some interviews with those troops and hearing their stories of being shocked were also very heartbreaking. I thought director Moll did a terrific job at taking all the stories and editing them together just as if the story was being told by one person. THE LAST DAYS isn't an easy film to watch as some of the images are just horrible but for history buffs it's a must see.

This movie was amazing. I was shocked at the fact that the one doctor was acquitted from Auschwitz because he was "nice". That was a little odd. This documentary takes the stories of the HUNGARIAN survivors and walks them back through the camp. There was a scene where one of the women sees the latrine. She gets upset. They also talk about how they would throw the dead bodies into fire pits and use the fat from the bodies as fuel to keep the bodies burning. What a horrible and unspeakable time. That one black man get my praise for killing the German soldier when he was spat on. So much hate was going on in that time. So much hate.

This is a movie of great historical,human value. The stories are presented in such a way that you have time to think about what you are seeing. I have a book which is a kind of companion piece to this movie ( it recommends seeing this film) - The Holocaust Chronicle. The Last Days brings to life the men and women on the pages of that book. The pain, the sorrow and suffering of a people who only wanted to live their lives and were only given hatred and scorn. To see how they have prospered is truly inspiring. The men and women who braved the worst scourges of the Nazi's should be shown in every high school world wide. This must never happen again. How fortunate the world is to have such brave, determined individuals in it. A must see for everyone. Bring plenty of tissues to the TV. You'll need them.