Operation Finale (4 Stars)

This is another film about Adolf Eichmann, possibly the most evil person in Germany after Adolf Hitler himself. It neatly complements the film "Eichmann", which was made in 2007. "Eichmann" is about the trial of Adolf Eichmann, whereas "Operation Finale" is about the way he was kidnapped in Argentina in 1960.

It would have been easy to assassinate Adolf Eichmann after he was identified. He had been living under the alias Ricardo Klement since 1945. Many of the Jews who took part in the operation would rather have killed him. He was personally responsible for the smooth running of every German concentration camp in World War Two. However, the Israeli prime minister himself, David Ben Gurion, insisted on him being captured alive and brought to Israel. Adolf Hitler, Joseph Goebbels and most of the other Nazi leaders had committed suicide, so Adolf Eichmann was the only prominent Nazi who could be brought to justice.

The capture itself was relatively easy. The difficult part was getting him out of the country. The Argentinian government had promised safe haven to Nazi war criminals, and even 15 years after the war in 1960 they were being protected.

The film doesn't go into all of Adolf Eichmann's crimes – for that you need to watch "Eichmann" – but it's careful to show flashbacks of him standing watching a mass slaughter of Jews in a forest. This should be enough to silence those who believe Hannah Arendt, the American Jew who claimed that Eichmann was innocent because he was only following orders. He was guilty. Throughout his trial he never once expressed any regret for his actions.

Ben Kingsley does an excellent job portraying Adolf Eichmann's indifference as he faced his captors. The film is bizarre in the way it portrays Argentinian life, with wealthy ex-Nazis having dinner parties in which they praised Adolf Hitler and blamed the Jews for losing the war. Bizarre but fascinating.

The film was shown in American cinemas, but in most other countries it's available on Netflix.