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And Finally the Tourists Come

A young German conscientious objector performing alternative service at the Auschwitz Museum is the protagonist of a film that opens in movie theatres across Germany today.

German critics praised the film, titled Am Ende kommen Touristen [And Finally the Tourists Come], as a successful attempt at comparing the average German’s idea of Auschwitz with the tragic history of the place.

The protagonist’s original indifference to the site of the Nazi death camp changes when he is given responsibility for looking after a former Auschwitz prisoner. Additionally, he falls in love with a Polish guide who works there.

Alexander Fehling plays the lead role, but the film also features a galaxy of Polish stars, including Ryszard Ronczewski (known from appearances in Andrzej Wajda’s films), Barbara Wysocka, and Roman Gancarczyk. Locations in Oświęcim were used, although the producers failed to obtain permission to film at the concentration camp site itself.

The director, Robert Thalheim, regarded as one of the promising young talents in German cinema, drew upon his own experience of performing alternative service in Oświęcim.

Am Ende kommen Touristen had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and has earned positive reviews in Germany. Die Zeit regards it as a fascinating look at German attitudes to Auschwitz, and Der Spiegel calls it “a quiet protest against the erosion of memory.”