An Officer and a Spy

Émile Zola is the best French writer of all time, and not because he's my favorite. He's France's best writer because his 20-volume novelization of the country's 2nd Empire is a monument to French literature. He's my favorite writer because not only is he enormously talented, but in an epoch when antisemitism was systematic and systemic, he (a casual antisemite himself as a child of his era) stood up against the army, Ministry of Defense and the entire nation to decry a cover-up concerning the innocence of an exiled Jewish officer. Zola is a gifted artist who also possess integrity, a combination that is as precious as it is rare. Many modern 'artists' simply use their talent as an excuse to commit unforgivable atrocities. (For example: towards the middle of this film a convicted pedophile makes a cameo appearance in a party scene!)

The Dreyfus case revisited, once again.