Between 1975 and 1979 nearly 1.8 million Cambodians died under the Khmer Rouge, and survivors tend to readily share their stories. But Panh’s film excavates new levels of horror, capturing the grueling tension that existed between jailer and jailed. More than 16,000 people were brought into S21 and tormented until they confessed to involvement with the CIA, KGB or Vietnamese enemies. Then they were put to death. In the film, Nath–who was spared for his talents as a painter–studies stacks of documents and photos of those brought to S21 with him. Coming across the picture of a prisoner that was killed, whose mother he still sees, he says matter-of-factly, “When she sees me, she cries.”
Presented at Cannes as an official selection outside of competition, “S21” is not easy to watch. Former staff re-enact their old duties; a guard mimes shackling and beating prisoners. Indeed, the film is often as jarring and unpredictable as S21 was. Scenes open without explanation or introduction. But these choices seem apt; after all, S21’s victims lived in a state of limbo, and the Khmer Rouge has never been brought to justice for its crimes. “The wound is still open,” says Nath toward the end. Through its force and honesty, Panh’s documentary may help the healing begin.
