German-born French documentarian Marcel Ophuls, 97, died in France on May 24. His greatest film was the 1969 The Sorrow and the Pity, about French collaborators in WWII (according to their memories, everyone in France—and their pets!—were brave members of the Resistance). Ophuls allowed that “In times of great crisis, we make decisions of life and death. It’s a lot to ask people to become heroes. You shouldn’t expect it of yourself and others.” His other films included A Sense of Loss (The Troubles in Ireland), Hôtel Terminus (Klaus Barbie), The Memory of Justice (both the Nuremberg trials and Vietnam), and Veillees d’Armes (Sarejevo). Ophuls and his family had fled from their native Germany during WWII, then from Paris to L.A. Back in France after the war, he worked his way up in the film industry, eventually writing and/or directing more than 20 films. “Ideas come when they come,” Ophuls said. “Some days you have no ideas at all, for weeks or more. They don't want to come. And you've got to work for them. Some people are more creative than others. Talent is not given to everyone.”
