THE LAST MENTSCH

Dir. Pierre-Henry Salfati
(93min,Germany / Switzerland / France, 2014)
German, Hungarian, Hebrew, English and Yiddish with English Subtitles
Narrative

A provocative meditation on the nature of Jewish identity, The Last Mentsch follows Auschwitz survivor Marcus Schwartz, a self-described “normal” German with no Jewish ties.

Now an old man, he suddenly decides that he wants to be buried in a Jewish cemetery. This ends up being more difficult than he imagined – his word is not enough for the rabbis; he must prove that he is Jewish.

For proof of a heritage he spent his lifetime denying, he returns to his hometown in Hungary. He enlists a young Turkish woman to drive him there, setting up a journey that will change both their lives.

-The Stanford Daily