By Reporter staff
The Binghamton Jewish Film Fest will hold a virtual showing of the film “The Tasters.” Nancy Basmann, a historian who trained at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London, and earned a doctorate in urban studies from the University of Kent in Canterbury, will lead the virtual discussion, which will take place on Sunday, February 8, at 5 pm. To register for links to the film and discussion, click here. Registration is due by Wednesday, February 4. The film will be available for viewing from Thursday-Sunday, February 5-8. The film is in Italian with subtitles. The film fest is sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater Binghamton.
“The Tasters” tells the story of 26-year-old Rosa, who escaped from bombed Berlin in 1943 and arrives at a village that hides a secret: Hitler’s headquarters are located there. Rosa is one of the women chosen to taste Hitler’s food before it is served to make certain it has not been poisoned. The film is inspired by a true story: shortly before her death in 2012, real-life Margot Wölk revealed that she had been one of the tasters and told her story for the first time. 
On the website Silenzioinsala.com, critic Giorgia Fanari wrote about the film, noting that “what truly emerges intelligently is the complexity of the contradictions inherent in war, which is not just a matter of battles between armies, but also an internal struggle, made up of painful moral choices, compromises and sacrifices. ‘The Tasters’ becomes a tale of survival, capable of delicately and convincingly bringing to the big screen the vision of women’s experiences in times of conflict.”
“Join us for this fascinating and complex film that explores ethical dilemmas, and is a story about the Holocaust that has never been told,” said Shelley Hubal, executive director of the Federation. “The virtual discussion also promises to be extremely interesting.”