A new French film explores the chilling moral descent of a bureaucrat who unknowingly aids a regime’s deadly machinery, offering a starkly modern take on collaboration under authoritarianism. Unlike traditional war dramas, Notre Salut blends contemporary visuals, improvised performances, and an unexpected 1980s soundtrack to examine how ordinary systems can enable atrocities. The director frames the story as a reflection on today’s political climate, where questions of complicity and institutional power resonate deeply. Its bold approach is drawing audiences to theaters, sparking conversations about history’s unsettling parallels.
Movie about Nazi-collaborating administration strikes chord during what director calls ‘time of great uncertainty’It is the story of how a lowly state administrator unthinkingly becomes a cog in the machine of an authoritarian regime, embracing the bureaucracy and logistics of sending people to their deaths – and it is drawing in audiences to French cinemas.The French film Notre Salut (Our Salvation), with its modern lighting, improvised scenes and anachronistic 1980s Europop soundtrack, is far from the standard historical costume drama about the second world war. Continue reading...
