Albert Schweitzer

Albert Schweitzer - Anatomy of a Saint

D/A/F 2010, 87/58 min, HD
Produziert von NFP neue film produktion www.nfp.de, Mischief Films, SEPPIA

This film discovers the person behind the public image of the saint, looking beyond the image created by the media of “the greatest man in the world.” It unravels how an underachieving schoolboy developed into a genius and will place his personality and thinking in context with the two biggest influences on him: nature and the music of J.S. Bach.

Trailer

Synopsis

Albert Schweitzer is the modern day saint of the 20th century, the emblematic jungle doctor that saved lives in Africa, the peace Nobel prize laureate who created the concept of “Reverence for Life”. He was one of the few universal geniuses, excelling as theologian, philosopher, musician, medical doctor and development worker, one of the first campaigners against nuclear warfare and the forefather of the ecology movement.

This film discovers the person behind the public image of the saint, looking beyond the image created by the media of “the greatest man in the world.” It unravels how an underachieving schoolboy developed into a genius and will place his personality and thinking in context with the two biggest influences on him: nature and the music of J.S. Bach.

The criticism that tarnished Schweitzer’s reputation will also be explored such as recent re-evaluations questioning the entire value of his development work and the CIA-led smear campaign against him during the McCarthy era, trying to discredit him as a communist because of his campaign against nuclear weapons.

Throughout all these explorations of Albert Schweitzer, the film’s ultimate goal is to find the relevance he holds for our world today in which the concept of “reverence for life” might be more up to date than we realise, in the context of global warming and continuing warfare.