The Documentary Trilogy

The Documentary Trilogy—The 81st Blow, Flames in the Ashes and The Last Sea—was produced by the Ghetto Fighter’s House Museum between the years 1974 and 1985. Contrary to many well-known testimonial films about the Holocaust of European Jewry, the three films contain not a single word of narration or commentary. The testimonies of the people themselves, both victims and perpetrators, are heard on top of authentic black and white footage, interspersed with excerpts from songs and melodies from the time, thus creating a narrative that turns the viewer into an active participant whose job is to decipher the meaning of the events.

Over the years, following technological advances, the films’ creators Haim Gouri, Jacques Ehrlich, and David Bergman took upon themselves to renew and update the documentary trilogy. One of the goals of the Israel Film Archive–Jerusalem Cinematheque is to locate and preserve archival material with social, cultural, and historical value, and therefore it enthusiastically undertook the mission of restoring and preserving the trilogy. The original films, produced on film, were sent for preservation to the British Film institute, where they were transferred to digital video and the quality of the image was enhanced. The films’ soundtracks were also converted to up-to-date formats, and its quality was improved drastically. Alongside the preservation and improvement of the technical aspects of the film, the three films were re-edited at the Jerusalem Cinematheque at the filmmakers request, and in coordination with the Ghetto Fighters House.

The Trilogy will be screened with a short intermission between The Last Sea and Flames in the Ashes