THE NATURAL HISTORY OF DESTRUCTION
A Refocus Film Festival Selection
Taking inspiration from W.G. Sebald’s novel On The Natural History of Destruction, Ukranian documentarian Sergei Loznitsa boldly confronts the devastating nature of war through this harrowing reconstruction of rare archival WWII footage. The film puts forward the following question: is it morally acceptable to use civilian populations as a means of war? Is it possible to justify mass destruction for the sake of higher “moral” ideals? The question remains as relevant today as it was 80 years ago, with its urgency tragically manifested in current events.
Official Selection: 2022 Cannes Film Festival, 2022 Chicago International Film Festival