The Nazi-Soviet Pact

THE GREATEST DIPLOMATIC FIASCO OF THE 20th CENTURY

(2018)

102 minutes

The German-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact signed on August 23, 1939 was one of the greatest coups de théâtre of the twentieth century, with abysmal consequences. Now assured of not being caught between East and West, Hitler invaded Poland and launched the Second World War. For his part, Stalin took over the Baltic States, half of Poland and part of Romania. The whole world was unaware that Stalin was applying a secret protocol annexed to the pact, by which he shared the countries of Central Europe with Hitler.

This Hitler-Stalin pact, forever marked with the seal of infamy, has since been the subject of two interpretations. For some, Hitler and Stalin, two bloodthirsty tyrants, were made to get along. For others, this pact was in reality a ruse by Stalin to gain time and prepare for a war against Hitler that he knew was inevitable.

Neither of these two interpretations can withstand the incredible and aberrant events that follow one another in this film and of which the Hitler-Stalin pact will only be the insane outcome.

Western Europe's refusal to oppose Hitler, the visceral repulsion between the capitalist West and communist Russia, absurd choices, the incompetence of some and the blindness of others: an inexorable descent into hell that the most lucid of the actors - such as Ivan Maïski, Maxime Litvinov, Winston Churchill - will not be able to stop.

TEAM
written by Cédric Tourbe
advisor : Nicolas Werth
directed by Cédric Tourbe
edited by Mathieu Blanc
music : Pierre Deschamps

narrator : Hervé Pierre (from the Comédie française)

maps : la brigade du titre
produced by David Coujard
production Agat Films
post-production : French Kiss / Pom'Zed
broadcast by ARTE France
participation : Île-de-France region, CNC, Procirep, Angoa

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