Review of Mr. Death: The Rise and Fall of Fred A. Leuchter, Jr. (1999) by Repping H — 12 Apr 2004

The film centers around Fred Leuchter, his rise -- starting as a concerned citizen who wanted to make sure that inmates were executed humainly -- to, as the continued title suggests, his subsequent fall after giving what could be construed as pro-Revisionist (he, near the end of the film, chooses not to label himself a pro-Revisionist) testimony as Ernst Zundel stood trial for writing and distributing documents alleging that the Holocaust didn't happen. that was an enormous sentence. what Fred Leuchter was doing testifying at this trial is a bone of contention for most of those interviewed, as he doesn't seem to have the qualifications or the general know how to do a convincing study of whether or not the remaining buildings left at Auschwitz were used for gassing Jews. he was picked because, apparently, he was the only specialist in gas extermination in North America, but in an earlier interview he raises doubt in his own abilities (and perhaps unknowingly, undermines his credibility later) by explaining that he became the expert in gas extermination because of his successes building gallows and lethal injection machines, but that technical competence with either domain really didn't guarantee qualification to work in the other field. his methods, which he videotaped, are called into question as being largely ineffective by the lone chemist asked, and his knowledge of the land around Auschwitz contradicted by a historian who has devoted his professional life to WWII-era, Jew extermination. the third act features interviews of people who were affected by Leuchter's testimony and report on his findings in Auschwitz: those who were converted by his, if I'm allowed to editorialize, lackluster evidence that the Holocaust never occured, and those on the other end who called him a hate monger, jumping, it would seem, to somewhat misinformed conclusions of the character of Leuchter (described by the representative for the newly convinced Revisionsist side as a "simpleton", which seems a far more accurate assessment). then we find out that his life is basically ruined, and there's the whole question of just how dearly the tenet of freedom of speech, and opinion, is held.

I'm done writing now, but before I click submit post, the portraiture through black and white slo-mo playback effect of Leuchter as he looks over his leftover electrocution equipment, making him look demonic -- someone who might just get off on killing -- was sort of a downer.

Errol Morris.

1. [b]The Thin Blue Line[/b].

2. [b]The Fog Of War[/b].

3. [b]Fast, Cheap, & Out Of Control[/b].

[i]4.[/i] [i][b]Mr. Death[/b][/i].