Reviewed by Libby Drake, Wednesday 5th April 2017
This fascinating film, Denial, tells the true story of American Professor Deborah Lipstadt, who was sued for libel by British author and Holocaust denier, David Irving.
Historian and academic, Lipstadt published a book in 1993 called Denying the Holocaust, in which she referred to Irving as a Holocaust denier. In 1996 Irving sued Lipstadt and Penguin Books for libel, saying that his reputation had been damaged and they had robbed him of financial security for the future. The trial took place in 2000.
Bringing the suit under English rather than US law meant that the burden of proof was on the accused, implying that Lipstadt had to prove that the Holocaust actually happened. Lipstadt's lawyers understood the complexities of proving the Holocaust and the implications should they lose. So, instead of taking the position of proving the Holocaust they set out to prove that what Lipstadt wrote was correct, that Irving was a liar, that he deliberately misrepresented and manipulated historical evidence, and that the intention of his lies was to support his racist views.
The film opens with some scene setting to ensure that the audience members understand the concept of Holocaust denial and also Lipstadt's views, then follows the enormous task of preparing the case for the defence. Lipstadt's lawyers propose that the case be heard by a single judge, and not a jury, and Irving agrees. Irving decides to represent himself in court, without the assistance of a legal team, and relishes the attention from the media. The statements he makes are outrageous, such as, "more women died on the back seat of Senator Edward Kennedy's car at Chappaquiddick than ever died in a gas chamber at Auschwitz". For those unfamiliar with the case, I will not divulge the outcome of the trial, details are easily found on the internet.
British born Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardener, The Bourne Legacy) plays the American Lipstadt and captures well the feisty, energetic character of the historian. The story unfolds from her perspective and we feel each turn and decision along with her. She struggles with the English legal system and to understand the angle that her legal team want to take, such as not letting her speak in court and not presenting survivors as witnesses, which would enable Irving to attack them. For the first time in her life she must hand control of her future to someone else. She realises that this case is about more than just her, and that it is essential to win.
An almost unrecognisably thin Timothy Spall (Mr. Turner, Harry Potter) plays Irving. His performance is outstanding. If Spall wasn't already so loved by cinema goers I'm sure that he would be greatly disliked after all of the vile words he speaks in this film. Irving is confident, brazen and blatantly offensive, down to the racist poem he recites to his child. Another much loved British actor, Tom Wilkinson (The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel), gives a very enjoyable performance as Lipstadt's wine loving barrister, Richard Rampton. AnDrew Scott (Sherlock) is solicitor Anthony Julius, in another very good performance. All performances, in fact, are good.
When writing the script, screenwriter and playwright, David Hare (The Hours, The Reader), spent many hours pouring over the court transcripts. All the trial scenes use the actual words spoken, which makes the statements even more shocking. It took Hare four to five hours to read each day of the 32-day trial. The script is concise, informative and keeps us riveted to the action, no mean feat considering the large volume of documentation available.
Denial is a fine piece of directing by Mick Jackson (The Bodyguard). Haris Zambarloukos' excellent cinematography, combined with crisp edits, means that the film appears to roll along at a busy pace, reflecting the huge amount of work that needed to be done. This briskness means that, when the pace slows down, it has real impact, especially for the scenes where Lipstadt and her lawyer visit Auschwitz.
Much attention has been given to authenticity. Denial was shot primarily in London where the trial took place, including in the Royal Courts of Justice and the Athenaeum Hotel on Piccadilly, where Lipstadt stayed. Scenes were also shot in Poland, at Auschwitz. These scenes are extremely well done. The slow and steady shots of various parts of the camp are done objectively, a technique that can be so much more powerful than a play for emotion.
This is not a film filled with sub-plots and time-consuming delving into the personal lives of the characters. The focus is squarely on telling the story of a Holocaust denier who sued a writer, and how the case was handled. There is little in the way of fabricated dramatics and Hollywood style embellishments. Hare himself stated that, when tackling the script, he "would not be offering a boilerplate Hollywood narrative". The film tells it like it was, with the nature of the case and personalities involved providing all of the interest required to tell this incredible true story. Fact can, sometimes, be more powerful than fiction.
Denial opens at Palace Nova Eastend Cinemas on Thursday 13th April.
