Figure 1.--This scene happens early in the 'The Round Up', before the Paris police began arresting Jews. A German soldier enjoying pleasant occupation duty is at a funfair in Paris. He is taken a cine film of the location. He spots the children. He smiles at them and he feels very happy as they play. He shows kindly feelings towards them. They look very French and adorable. Just the images for the folks back home. Many of the boys wear their school smocks and have berets. As the solders pans out from the close-up the Jewish yellow star emblem is revealed and the soldier is shocked when he realizes that Jewish boys are mixed in with the school group he has been photographing! He no longer smiles at them and feels ill at ease that he has accidentally photographed Jews. This is an emotive scene, but we are not entirely sure this is an accurate depicgion. As part of the anti-Semetic legislation in both Vichy and German occupied areas (including Paris), Jews were excluded from parks, movie theaters, and other areas of public recreation. When we first saw this image, we thought it was agroup of Jewish children, but Jews were not excluded by Vichy from the public schools. (We are not sure yet about foreign Jews.) Put your cursor on the image to see the rest of the group.

"The Round Up" / "La Rafle" is a 2010 French film about the first big operation against the Jews in France. This is a topic most French film makers have avoided. It was directed by Roselyne Bosch and produced by Alain Goldman. The actors include Mélanie Laurent, Jean Reno, Sylvie Testud and Gad Elmaleh. It is an account of the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup (Rafle du Vel' d'Hiv) in Paris. The name comes from the biycycle stadium where those arrested were held in terrible conditions during the hot Paris summer. The events are depicted through they eyes of Joseph, an 11-year Jewish school boy, and are based based on true experiences and actual events. What Jseph does not know is that by mid-1942, the Germans have completed their killing infrastructure in Poland. They have begun killing Polish Jews in large numbers and are now ready for transports of Jews from the West. The French police knew where to look. French Jews had been carefully registered. And they were required to wear the yellow badges 'Juif' star-of-David badges to make them easier to pick up. The film begins as Joseph goes off the school wearing his badge. Some of the peoole he passes are sympatheic, others are hostile. Jo, his Jewish friends, their families, and begun to learn how to live in the new circumstances of anti-Semetic France under German rule. Many have lost their jobs and property, but they were still alive and not yet in camps. Some have taken shelter on the Butte Montmartre. Than everything changes without warning (July 16, 1942). The Paris police (not the Germans) suddenly begin the mass arrests of Jews. The French Holocaust is notable for the level of complicity of French (Vichy) authorities. Some 13,000 men, women, and children are cramed into the Vélodrome D'Hiver. The film ranges from Vel' d'Hiv, to Vichy and the Berghof where the fate of these and others Jews are being decided. We see both the unsuspecting victims and their murderes. Some managed to flee and hide. Others not understanding the machinery of murder that had been organized followed instructions.

Filmology

"The Round Up" / "La Rafle" is a 2010 French film about the first big operation against the Jews in France. There were some earlier, but small round ups. This is a topic most French film makers have avoided. It was directed by Roselyne Bosch and produced by Alain Goldman.

Cast

The actors include Mélanie Laurent, Jean Reno, Sylvie Testud and Gad Elmaleh.

Paris Round Up

The film is an account of the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup (Rafle du Vel' d'Hiv) in Paris. The name comes from the biycycle stadium where those arrested were held in terrible conditions during the hot Paris summer.

Plot

The events are depicted through they eyes of Joseph, an 11-year Jewish school boy, and are based based on true experiences and actual events. What Joseph does not know is that by mid-1942, the Germans have completed their killing infrastructure in Poland. They have begun killing Polish Jews in large numbers and are now ready for transports of Jews from the West. The French police knew where to look. French Jews had been carefully registered. And they were required to wear the yellow badges 'Juif' star-of-David badges to make them easier to pick up June 1, 1942). The film begins as Joseph goes off the school wearing his new badge. Some of the people he passes are sympatheic, others are hostile. The scene with the school boys is at the beginning of the film. It seems that Jewish children were able to attend the same schools as their non Jewish peers. The film indicates that this changed in the summer holidays of 1942 shortly before 'Le Rafle'. Suddenly parks were closed to them and a Jewish girl was distraught because she could no longer attend Ballet classes. There is one scene in summer where a wayward girl refuses to be so labeled and wonders off without this mark. There is a priest whose family was Jewish who als wears the yellow star. The apartment where most jewish people live also has non Jewish people living there as well. Two Jewish trainee nurses wear the yellow star and are welcomed into the nurses training school and graduate. Jo, his Jewish friends, their families, and begun to learn how to live in the new circumstances of anti-Semetic France under German rule. Many have lost their jobs and property, but they were still alive and not yet in camps. Some have taken shelter on the Butte Montmartre. Than everything changes without warning (July 16, 1942). The Paris police (not the Germans) suddenly begin the mass arrests of Jews. The French Holocaust is notable for the level of complicity of French (Vichy) authorities. Some 13,000 men, women, and children are cramed into the Vélodrome D'Hiver. The film ranges from Vel' d'Hiv, to Vichy and the Berghof where the fate of these and others Jews are being decided. We see both the unsuspecting victims and their murderes. Some managed to flee and hide. Others not understanding the machinery of murder that had been organized followed instructions.

HBC

Created: 5:28 PM 12/1/2011
Last updated: 11:33 AM 12/5/2011