Its dramatic high point involves Mr. Goldhagen’s stalking Efraín Ríos Montt, the former dictator, through the halls of Guatemala’s Parliament until Mr. Ríos Montt agrees to talk about the killings of Mayan villagers during his time as ruler. As a smiling Mr. Ríos Montt says that he would be in jail if he were responsible for the deaths of 200,000 Mayans, Mr. Goldhagen’s voice on the soundtrack says, “Staring into the eyes of this killer, I feel outrage and disgust.”“Worse than War” premieres tonight on PBS (check local listings) and serves as a documentary companion to Goldhagen’s controversial 2009 book of the same name. The film mimics the book by noting the similarities among genocides around the world including in Guatemala during the early 1980s. The following video is of Goldhagen describing the film and includes a few clips of his work in Guatemala:
Online Sources- New York Times, YouTube
I saw the film last night on tv. Goldhagen does a brilliant job in Guatemala. He takes us everywhere. The politicians, the perpetrators, the victims, the reasons, the context of other genocides. The tragedy of it all. This film goes deep into the human condition. It speaks truth to power.
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