Shoah (1985)

Shoah poster
Theatrical Performance
Domestic Box Office $20,175Details
Further financial details...

Synopsis

Shoah is a documentary film, concerned mainly with four topics: Chelmno, where gas vans were first used to exterminate Jews; the death camps of Treblinka and Auschwitz-Birkenau; and the Warsaw Ghetto, with testimonies from survivors, witnesses, and perpetrators. The sections on Treblinka include testimony from Abraham Bomba, who survived as a barber, Richard Glazar, an inmate, and a rare interview with Franz Suchomel, an SS officer who worked at the camp who reveals intricate details of the camp's gas chamber. Suchomel apparently agreed to provide Lanzmann with some anonymous background details; Lanzmann instead secretly filmed his interview, with the help of assistants and a hidden camera. There is also an account from Henrik Gawkowsky, who drove one of the trains while intoxicated with vodka. Testimonies on Auschwitz are provided by Rudolf Vrba, who escaped from the camp before the end of the war and Filip Müller, who worked in an incinerator burning the bodies from the gassings. There are also accounts from various local villagers, who saw the trains heading daily to the camp and leaving empty; they quickly guessed the fate of those on board. The only two Jews to survive Chelmno are interviewed: Simon Srebnik, who was forced to sing military songs to amuse the Nazis and Mordechaï Podchlebnik. There is also a secretly-filmed interview with Franz Schalling, who was a guard. The Warsaw ghetto is discussed toward the end of the film, and the conditions there are described by Jan Karski, who worked for the Polish government-in-exile and Franz Grassler, a Nazi administrator who liaised with Jewish leaders. Memories from Jewish participants in the Warsaw Ghetto uprising conclude the documentary. Lanzmann also interviews Holocaust historian Raul Hilberg, who discusses the historical significance of Nazi propaganda against the European Jews and the Nazi invention of the Final Solution.

Metrics

Legs:7.02 (domestic box office/biggest weekend)
Domestic Share:100.0% (domestic box office/worldwide)
Infl. Adj. Dom. BO $35,121

Latest Ranking on Cumulative Box Office Lists

See the Box Office tab (Domestic) and International tab (International and Worldwide) for more Cumulative Box Office Records.


Watch Now On

Amazon VOD:Amazon

Movie Details

Domestic Releases: November, 1985 (Limited) by IFC Films
December 10th, 2010 (Limited) by IFC Films
Video Release: June 25th, 2013 by Criterion
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Running Time: 280 minutes
Comparisons: vs. Pet Sematary
Create your own comparison chart…
Keywords: World War II, War Crimes, Bigotry
Source:Based on Real Life Events
Genre:Documentary
Production Method:Live Action
Creative Type:Factual
Production/Financing Companies: Historia, Les Films Aleph, Ministere de la Culture de la Republique Francaise
Production Countries: France
Languages: English, French, German, Hebrew, Polish, Yiddish

Compare this performance with other movies…

Domestic Cumulative Box Office Records

Weekend Box Office Performance

DateRankGross% ChangeTheatersPer TheaterTotal GrossWeek
Dec 10, 2010 87 $2,874   1 $2,874   $2,874 1
Dec 17, 2010 80 $1,740 -39% 1 $1,740   $6,996 2
Dec 24, 2010 64 $2,787 +60% 1 $2,787   $11,385 3
Dec 31, 2010 76 $2,514 -10% 1 $2,514   $15,642 4

Daily Box Office Performance

Weekly Box Office Performance

DateRankGross% ChangeTheatersPer TheaterTotal GrossWeek
Dec 10, 2010 86 $5,256   1 $5,256   $5,256 1
Dec 17, 2010 83 $3,342 -36% 1 $3,342   $8,598 2
Dec 24, 2010 74 $4,530 +36% 1 $4,530   $13,128 3
Dec 31, 2010 70 $7,047 +56% 1 $7,047   $20,175 4

Interviewee(s)

Simon Srebnik Himself
Mordechai Podchlebnik Hemself
Motke Zaidl Himself
Hanna Zaidl Herself
Jan Piwonski Herself
Richard Glazer Himself
Rudolf Vrba Himself

For a description of the different acting role types we use to categorize acting perfomances, see our Glossary.

Production and Technical Credits

Claude Lanzmann Director
Dominique Chapuis Cinematographer
Jimmy Glasberg Cinematographer
William Lubtchansky Cinematographer
Ziva Postec Editor
Anna Ruiz Editor

DVD and Blu-ray Releases for June 25th, 2013

June 24th, 2013

It's summer time. Long time readers know what that means for the home market. It's bad news. There are a couple of first-run releases to come out: The Call and The Incredible Burt Wonderstone. The former was a solid midlevel hit earning more than $50 million on a $13 million budget. The latter bombed. Neither one is a contender for Pick of the Week. There are a couple limited releases that might rise to that level, but I think the best release is Todd & the Book of Pure Evil: The Complete Second Season on DVD. Unfortunately, the screener arrived late so I haven't had a chance to review it, and I hate handing out that honor when till after I give the screener a full review. Fortunately, there is a screener that arrived late that is worth that honor: My Neighbor Totoro on Blu-ray. More...

Fighting to the Top of the Per Theater Chart

December 14th, 2010

The Fighter started its run on top of the per theater chart with an average of $75,003 in four theaters. That's not the best per theater average of the year, or even of recent weeks, but it does suggest it will perform well when it expands wide on Friday. Black Swan remained potent on the per theater chart despite very significant expansion. It earned an average of $36,726 in 90 theaters, which is more than enough to assume further expansion over the coming weeks. The King's Speech was close behind with an average of $31,148 in 19 theaters during its third week of release. More...


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  3. Box Office
  4. International
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Synopsis

Shoah is a documentary film, concerned mainly with four topics: Chelmno, where gas vans were first used to exterminate Jews; the death camps of Treblinka and Auschwitz-Birkenau; and the Warsaw Ghetto, with testimonies from survivors, witnesses, and perpetrators. The sections on Treblinka include testimony from Abraham Bomba, who survived as a barber, Richard Glazar, an inmate, and a rare interview with Franz Suchomel, an SS officer who worked at the camp who reveals intricate details of the camp's gas chamber. Suchomel apparently agreed to provide Lanzmann with some anonymous background details; Lanzmann instead secretly filmed his interview, with the help of assistants and a hidden camera. There is also an account from Henrik Gawkowsky, who drove one of the trains while intoxicated with vodka. Testimonies on Auschwitz are provided by Rudolf Vrba, who escaped from the camp before the end of the war and Filip Müller, who worked in an incinerator burning the bodies from the gassings. There are also accounts from various local villagers, who saw the trains heading daily to the camp and leaving empty; they quickly guessed the fate of those on board. The only two Jews to survive Chelmno are interviewed: Simon Srebnik, who was forced to sing military songs to amuse the Nazis and Mordechaï Podchlebnik. There is also a secretly-filmed interview with Franz Schalling, who was a guard. The Warsaw ghetto is discussed toward the end of the film, and the conditions there are described by Jan Karski, who worked for the Polish government-in-exile and Franz Grassler, a Nazi administrator who liaised with Jewish leaders. Memories from Jewish participants in the Warsaw Ghetto uprising conclude the documentary. Lanzmann also interviews Holocaust historian Raul Hilberg, who discusses the historical significance of Nazi propaganda against the European Jews and the Nazi invention of the Final Solution.

Metrics

Legs:7.02 (domestic box office/biggest weekend)
Domestic Share:100.0% (domestic box office/worldwide)
Infl. Adj. Dom. BO $35,121

Latest Ranking on Cumulative Box Office Lists

See the Box Office tab (Domestic) and International tab (International and Worldwide) for more Cumulative Box Office Records.


Watch Now On

Amazon VOD:Amazon

Movie Details

Domestic Releases: November, 1985 (Limited) by IFC Films
December 10th, 2010 (Limited) by IFC Films
Video Release: June 25th, 2013 by Criterion
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Running Time: 280 minutes
Comparisons: vs. Pet Sematary
Create your own comparison chart…
Keywords: World War II, War Crimes, Bigotry
Source:Based on Real Life Events
Genre:Documentary
Production Method:Live Action
Creative Type:Factual
Production/Financing Companies: Historia, Les Films Aleph, Ministere de la Culture de la Republique Francaise
Production Countries: France
Languages: English, French, German, Hebrew, Polish, Yiddish

Interviewee(s)

Simon Srebnik Himself
Mordechai Podchlebnik Hemself
Motke Zaidl Himself
Hanna Zaidl Herself
Jan Piwonski Herself
Richard Glazer Himself
Rudolf Vrba Himself

For a description of the different acting role types we use to categorize acting perfomances, see our Glossary.

Production and Technical Credits

Claude Lanzmann Director
Dominique Chapuis Cinematographer
Jimmy Glasberg Cinematographer
William Lubtchansky Cinematographer
Ziva Postec Editor
Anna Ruiz Editor

DVD and Blu-ray Releases for June 25th, 2013

June 24th, 2013

It's summer time. Long time readers know what that means for the home market. It's bad news. There are a couple of first-run releases to come out: The Call and The Incredible Burt Wonderstone. The former was a solid midlevel hit earning more than $50 million on a $13 million budget. The latter bombed. Neither one is a contender for Pick of the Week. There are a couple limited releases that might rise to that level, but I think the best release is Todd & the Book of Pure Evil: The Complete Second Season on DVD. Unfortunately, the screener arrived late so I haven't had a chance to review it, and I hate handing out that honor when till after I give the screener a full review. Fortunately, there is a screener that arrived late that is worth that honor: My Neighbor Totoro on Blu-ray. More...

Fighting to the Top of the Per Theater Chart

December 14th, 2010

The Fighter started its run on top of the per theater chart with an average of $75,003 in four theaters. That's not the best per theater average of the year, or even of recent weeks, but it does suggest it will perform well when it expands wide on Friday. Black Swan remained potent on the per theater chart despite very significant expansion. It earned an average of $36,726 in 90 theaters, which is more than enough to assume further expansion over the coming weeks. The King's Speech was close behind with an average of $31,148 in 19 theaters during its third week of release. More...

Compare this performance with other movies…

Domestic Cumulative Box Office Records

Weekend Box Office Performance

DateRankGross% ChangeTheatersPer TheaterTotal GrossWeek
Dec 10, 2010 87 $2,874   1 $2,874   $2,874 1
Dec 17, 2010 80 $1,740 -39% 1 $1,740   $6,996 2
Dec 24, 2010 64 $2,787 +60% 1 $2,787   $11,385 3
Dec 31, 2010 76 $2,514 -10% 1 $2,514   $15,642 4

Daily Box Office Performance

Weekly Box Office Performance

DateRankGross% ChangeTheatersPer TheaterTotal GrossWeek
Dec 10, 2010 86 $5,256   1 $5,256   $5,256 1
Dec 17, 2010 83 $3,342 -36% 1 $3,342   $8,598 2
Dec 24, 2010 74 $4,530 +36% 1 $4,530   $13,128 3
Dec 31, 2010 70 $7,047 +56% 1 $7,047   $20,175 4