Nazis measure the head and nose of a soldier

In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as "The Basterds" are chosen specifically to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by scalping and brutally killing Nazis. The Basterds, lead by Lt. Aldo Raine soon cross paths with a French-Jewish teenage girl who runs a movie theater in Paris which is targeted by the soldiers.

Dictator Adenoid Hynkel tries to expand his empire while a poor Jewish barber tries to avoid persecution from Hynkel's regime.

In this visual essay, Charles Chaplin biographer Jeffrey Vance, author of "Chaplin: Genius of the Cinema", draws upon a wealth of photography as well as a wide range of interviews (Paulette Goddard, Sydney Chaplin, Chuck Jones, Leni Riefenstahl, Mel Brooks, Joan Collins et al.) to examine the production history of "The Great Dictator", the film's importance as a satire, and legacy.

Though Nazi law proclaimed anyone who was one-quarter Jewish to be a Jew, many mixed-lineage men were proud patriots who were drafted into the German army. This harrowing documentary follows four such soldiers. Larry Price's fascinating film explores the complicated challenges faced by this quartet and paints a devastating portrait of the systematic destruction at the heart of Hitler's rule.