Furthermore, it may be the fact that information about the Holocaust was delayed in reaching a mass audience until the mid 1960's and therefore, generations of people have not yet fully come to terms with what occurred.
Regardless of why this genre of film is popular, questions of whether it is ethical to portray such events in such graphic detail in a fictional context can arise. Similarly, it has been questioned as to whether using humour, black comedy and melodrama within the context of this genre is somehow lessening or perhaps desensitizing the viewers to the harsh realities of the actualities of the Holocaust.
.
The Holocaust: A Genre Analysis.
When choosing to create fictional films about the Holocaust, directors are burdened with the task of finding an appropriate language to convey the depths of emotion inextricably linked to the subject matter, as well conveying the story in a way which is both sympathetic and historically accurate.
There are literally hundreds of fictional or documentary-drama pieces about the Holocaust with a number of themes in use. .
Throughout the early 1950's, 1960's and 1970's, the Holocaust films were mainly centred around the Jewish victims and the Nazi villains and perhaps conveyed a more sanitised version of the events (Nixdorf, 2003. pg 247). Themes popular throughout this era were the depiction of Jews in hiding and Jews as successful, accomplished individuals who were unfairly persecuted.
The Diary of Anne Frank, which was made in 1959 was one of the more popular films of its time. The film attempted to re-tell the true story of a Dutch, Jewish girl's years in hiding from the Nazis. Adapted from the Pulitzer winning play by writers Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, the movie provided a highly sanitised and romanticised version of events. In reality, Anne Frank was only thirteen years old when she first went into hiding in Amsterdam, however actress Millie Perkins was clearly much older, a choice which was popular with American audiences, but sacrificed the point that even the young were not spared.
