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A deafening silence

When are religious leaders obligated to speak out against tyranny and atrocities? When is it prudent for them to keep silent so they can fight another day? These are two of the timely questions raised by a pair of small films making the independent circuit: Amen, by celebrated filmmaker Constantin Costa-Gavras (Z and Missing), and Bonhoeffer, a documentary by Martin Doblmeier.

Both films use real-life stories and both succeed, to a point, in convincing us that spiritual and physical sacrifices must be made in the battle against evil.