A Jewish family from Poland, the Weisses, is sent to Auschwitz where the daughter, Martha, is selected to be an interpreter. The rest of her family are cruelly killed, and Martha and the other Poles must struggle under the tyranny of camp guards and capos. THE LAST STAGE is a powerful drama of the strength and endurance of ordinary women written by Gerda Schneider and directed by Poland s first female filmmaker, Wanda Jakubowska, who based the story on their own experiences at the notorious concentration camp.

Shot in a documentary-like style on location in Auschwitz just three years after the war ended, this recently rediscovered film is one of the earliest cinematic depictions of the Holocaust. It rings with truth and stings with authenticity.