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The Memory Thief

Play trailer Poster for The Memory Thief 2007 1h 35m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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80% Tomatometer 15 Reviews 43% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
An aimless young man obsesses about Jews who were the victims of Nazis.

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The Memory Thief

Critics Reviews

View All (15) Critics Reviews
Mark Holcomb Time Out Rated: 4/5 Nov 17, 2011 Full Review Mark Olsen Los Angeles Times There are intriguing issues swirling around the film, but [director] Kofman never brings it to a boil, never finds the deeper, truer meaning inside the ideas he is grappling with. Rated: 2.5/5 May 30, 2008 Full Review Leba Hertz San Francisco Chronicle Director Gil Kofman's attempt is noble in trying to show this descent into madness, but something rings false. Rated: 2/4 May 9, 2008 Full Review Nora Lee Mandel Film-Forward.com A thoughtful, creative, and disturbing way to treat the numbness of Holocaust and genocide fatigue, through striking images of a man's bizarre transformation and obsession. Rated: 8/10 Dec 7, 2008 Full Review Eric Monder Film Journal International The film deserves qualified praise. May 14, 2008 Full Review Ken Fox TV Guide While the film tends to talk over itself in its attempt to say all it needs to say on the subject, his film's uncompromisingly bleak vision is a bracing alternative. Rated: 3/4 May 9, 2008 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (18) audience reviews
ronald h This is the most disturbing movie I've seen in years---and it's not a horror movie or even a suspense movie. It's simply about a young toll booth worker who, either by accident or by divine design, becomes obsessed with the Holocaust. He's a Christian, but he adapts himself to Judaism. He starts working part time for the Holocaust Foundation. He papers his walls with clippings of Holocaust victims, and he spends hours watching tapes of survivors telling their horror stories. He inexorably descends into madness. He puts up signs at his tollbooth, ordering German cars to take a different lane. This film affected me deeply. But it's not entirely because of the tragic historical subject matter. It's because of the young man, who finds his calling in life by chronicling the suffering of others. It's not normal; it's not healthy. As viewers, we just don't know how to process it. Mark Webber is memorable as the main character, but Jerry Adler's performance as a survivor steals the show. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member There are intriguing issues swirling around the film, but [director] Kofman never brings it to a boil, never finds the deeper, truer meaning inside the ideas he is grappling with. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member A very intense depiction of a young man's life unraveling. Meanwhile he's attached himself to the stories of Holocaust Survivors. A very dark film. Don't get me wrong: I liked it, I'm just warning you. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/05/23 Full Review Audience Member Kofman misses the mark - comes off as abnormal, obsessive, amateurish and psychotic...very challenging to watch in one sitting. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 01/18/23 Full Review Audience Member Just as protagonist/anti-hero Mark Webber fails to unearth a deeper meaning behind the Holocaust, so too does "Memory Thief" fail to place any meaning behind Webber's bizarre collapse into insanity. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Audience Member There is something incredibly distrubing about this film and I'm not quite sure what the writer and directior was trying to prove with this, except to make a case study about obession and just how one falls into madness or mental illness altogether. The reason it wasn't so successful was because the topic is so taboo and distrubing, its hard for people to appreciate the actual brillance of the film. The character who starts off likeable slowly becomes more and more digusting and unwatchable. Marc Webber is excellent giving off a discernibly creepy vibe that's off-putting and maddening. The story unfolds slowly almost taking you by surprise when you realize what the character is becoming or trying to become. Wonderful script, well executed and definately memorable if not disturbing. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/18/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Memory Thief

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Movie Info

Synopsis An aimless young man obsesses about Jews who were the victims of Nazis.
Director
Gil Kofman
Producer
Gil Kofman, Marika Van Adelsburg, Amy Ziering
Screenwriter
Gil Kofman
Production Co
Stark Raving Films
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 15, 2020
Runtime
1h 35m
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