Documentary features, and really any artistic works having to do with history, often do not exist just to relay information but to make its audience not forget what it has to say. In that manner, few topics from more modern history are weightier to deal with than the Holocaust. Looking into the lives of Jewish citizens in a Polish village at the start of World War II, and stretching just three minutes of these people to feature length, “Three Minutes: A Lengthening” offers a wholly unique look at just a small section of people who would face the gravest of inhumanity. Following a trailer for the film from earlier this year, one more look is here for the forthcoming documentary.
READ MORE: Giving Life to a Lost Community in ‘Three Minutes – A Lengthening’ [Venice Review]
We were able to review “Three Minutes: A Lengthening” during its premiere at the Venice Film Festival last year. Our reception to the film was glowing, which is available to read through the link above. Of particular note, we wrote of “Three Minutes: A Lengthening” that “by showing once-lost footage that was only restored in the nick of time before being destroyed by vinegar syndrome, along with a verbal testimony that only survived the Nazis by being buried in the ground, the film invites reflection on the physical aspect of preserving history.” If that, alongside the mere fact that its footage still exists, does not create some interest in seeing the film, it is unclear what could possibly be more convincing.
Here’s the official synopsis:
So long as we are watching history, history is not over. Three minutes of footage, shot by David Kurtz in 1938, are the only moving images remaining of the Jewish inhabitants of Nasielsk, Poland, before the Holocaust. “Three Minutes: A Lengthening” explores the human stories hidden within the celluloid.
Co-produced by Steve McQueen, narrated by Helena Bonham Carter, and written and directed by Bianca Stigter, “Three Minutes: A Lengthening” has its limited theatrical release in Los Angeles and New York on August 19. Watch the new trailer below.