The Ninth Day

The Ninth Day is a 2004 German historical drama film directed by Volker Schlöndorff and starring Ulrich Matthes and August Diehl. It was released by Kino International.

The film is about a Catholic priest from Luxembourg who is imprisoned in Dachau concentration camp, but released for nine days. The story is based on a portion of Pfarrerblock 25487 (ISBN 2-87963-286-2), the diary of Father Jean Bernard (1907–1994), which was translated into English by Deborah Lucas Schneider as Priestblock 25487: A Memoir of Dachau (ISBN 978-0972598170) and released in 2007.

Synopsis

Henri Kremer, a Catholic priest from Luxemburg, is imprisoned in Dachau. He experiences the horrors of the camps, including the crucifixion of some of his fellow prisoners, when one day he is given an unexpected leave of nine days. He returns to his native city, where the young SS officer Gebhardt tells him that he should convince his bishop to cooperate with the Nazis. Gebhardt, himself a former candidate for the priesthood, tries to convince the priest that the role of Judas is just what God wants from him. Kremer is confronted with a hard decision: Should he betray his Church or should he return to the concentration camp?

External links

• Official Website
• The Ninth Day at the Internet Movie Database
• Press book
• The Ninth Day Web site in Luxembourg
• H. Marcuse's page comparing film and memoir
• Detailed review in Opuszine
• Decentfilms.com review