Vita Activa: The Spirit of Hannah Arendt

Documentary portrait of the the German-Jewish philosopher Hannah Arendt who caused an uproar in the 1960s by coining the subversive concept of the “banality of evil” when referring to the trial of Nazi Adolph Eichmann, which she covered for The New Yorker.

"Her private life was no less controversial, thanks to her early love affair with the renowned German philosopher and Nazi supporter Martin Heidegger... With its abundance of archival materials, [this] offers an intimate portrait of the whole of Arendt’s life, traveling to places where she lived, worked, loved, and was betrayed, as she wrote about the open wounds of modern times. Through her books and the 2012 release of Margarethe von Trotta’s biopic Hannah Arendt, there is renewed interest in Arendt throughout the world, especially among young people. They find her insights into the nature of evil, totalitarianism, ideologies, and the perils faced by refugees more relevant than ever." (Santa Barbara International Film Festival)

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