El silencio de otros (2018)

El silencio de otros: Directed by Robert Bahar, Almudena Carracedo. With María Martín, Francisco Franco, Adolf Hitler, José María Galante. The Silence of Others reveals the epic struggle of victims of Spain’s 40-year dictatorship under General Franco, who continue to seek justice to this day. Filmed over six years, the film follows the survivors as they organize the groundbreaking ‘Argentine Lawsuit’ and fight a state-imposed amnesia of crimes against humanity, and explores a country still divided four decades into democracy. Seven years in the making, The Silence of Others is the second documentary feature by Emmy-winning filmmakers Almudena Carracedo and Robert Bahar (Made in L.A.). It is being Executive Produced by Pedro Almodóvar, Agustín Almodóvar, and Esther García.

“I very much liked this documentary while watching it. I have little knowledge of this issue (other than Franco being barely to the left of Hitler, his ally during WWII, with similar racial policies), as it has been forgotten or tried to be by almost everyone, esp the US, as Spain was a needed ally for a military base, and a handy anti-communist state (oh the terrible right wing regimes we have backed for that reason!). There was a lot of satire about Franco in the 70s, and then Juan Carlos after that, particularly by Sat Night Live, but other than that, not much info going around.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThis is a very focused film, only about the lawsuit filed in 2010, and I appreciate that. It is very well done and doesnu0026#39;t pander to the vieweru0026#39;s sympathies. It is only near the end that the emotional intensity is raised. Now Iu0026#39;m ready to learn more about both sides. I see in the critical reviews, some predictably claiming that both sides did things, which is the usual defense of these things, as well as the accusation of u0026quot;revengeu0026quot; aimed at the victims or families of Francou0026#39;s regime, as if that makes hundreds of thousands killed and tortured by Francou0026#39;s (and following) regime ok. But my further research (donu0026#39;t look to Wikipedia, strangely lacking on this matter) will enlighten me. I will search for other docs on this matter and the history of the Spanish Civil War and following era.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAs the families of murder victims know, there is little closure if the body is not found, or the murderer are not found or tried and/or punished. War crimes involve the addition of mass graves and that the families know exactly how their loved ones were jailed, tortured, and murdered. For their beliefs (not any better than someone being murdered for the change in their pockets). The real shame here is in the last grave shown and that Franco and his minions learned from the fate of their friends Hitler and the Nazis.”