Killing Kasztner / 2008
How much does one negotiate with the enemy? In Israel the debate surrounding this question can provoke fury to the point of assassination. Such was the case of Dr. Israel Kasztner. Killing Kasztner peels back layers of history, deepening our understanding of World War II and Israel's fledgling years.
Dr. Israel Kasztner, a Hungarian Jew, negotiated directly with Adolf Eichmann to purchase Jewish lives with smuggled funds. As a result, thousands were transported to Switzerland on what became known as “Kasztner’s train”. Later, this extraordinary act was cast as a betrayal. After moving to Israel, many of Kasztner’s new countrymen accused him of collaborating with the enemy. He fought a vicious libel battle in a trial that portrayed him as “the man who sold his soul to the devil,” and was ultimately assassinated in Tel Aviv in 1957.
Director Gaylen Ross examines this story as it plays out today, when passions can still run high among those touched by Kasztner’s life, helping bring his memory back to life.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
REVIEWS
Hero or collaborator?
Jerusalem Post, Israel - Jan 2, 2009
Cinefile: Ten best of 2008
Jerusalem Post, Israel - Jan 2, 2009
He Sold His Soul
Haaretz, Israel - Mar 03, 2009
50 years on, Holocaust survivor defends Rudolph Kasztner
Haaretz, Israel - Dec 14, 2008
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PAST SCREENINGS
Premiere
Toronto International Film Festival 2008
Toronto Archives 2008
Special sneak preview:
05 March 2009.
UK Jewish Film Festival at The Tricycle Theatre
UK Jewish Film Festival
The Tricycle Theatre - Killing Kasztner
26 March-5 April 2009
Titanic Film International Festival. Budapest, Hungary
Titanic Film Festival
22:00 Mon 25 May 2009
Storyville - BBC Four
BBC Four - Storyville
00:30, Fri 29 May 2009
Storyville - BBC Four
BBC Four - Storyville
20:00, Wed 13 May 2009
Jewish Film Festival Berlin, Kino Arsenal
Berlin Jewish Film Festival
3-10 October 2009
Haifa international Film Festival Israel
Haifa Film Festival
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Directed by Gaylen Ross
Producers: Gaylen Ross, Andrew Cohen, Anne Feinsilber, Noam Shalev
GR Films Inc/ DOCFACTORY.
more Killing Kasztner: http://www.grfilmsinc.com