The pictures aren't of top quality in this 1975 documentary, but the content is unforgettable. Who would have thought that it was possible, in 2018, to hear the recorded voice of Dreyfus, or to watch an interview with his daughter, to view newsreels of the later stages of the event, and the reconstructions of Georges Meliès, to see so many images from newspapers of that time, those vile caricatures of Jews we now associate more with the Nazi regime, with Julius Streicher and Der Stürmer in particular. And, of course, a couple of interviews with respectable looking old men, who believed that Dreyfus was guilty- and would have probably gone on to become Holocaust deniers had they outlived the eye-witnesses. A question mark is left over the rôle of Esterhazy and his continued protection by the authorities- a double agent, maybe, but in no way a decent, honest human being.
L'Affaire Dreyfus remains a warning to any country which considers itself democratic or civilised- the power of the popular press, generally owned by right-wing magnates, the desire to externalise culpability for the internal troubles of a nation state. It is impossible to underestimate the importance of this case, even today. Herzl began the Zionist movement ...
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
