La France de l'épuration, entre vengeance et justice

Grainy black-and-white footage shows a crowd on a Parisian street shearing the hair of a woman accused of collaborating with the occupiers. This 2025 documentary delves into one of France's most painful and contentious historical chapters: the post-war purge known as the 'Épuration'. The director meticulously assembles survivor testimonies, court records, and private letters to reveal how a nation, freshly liberated from Nazi oppression, grappled with judging its own citizens. The film navigates the fine line between historical inquiry and moral reflection, probing where justice ends and vengeance begins in the wake of collective trauma. Through personal narratives—from Resistance fighters to the accused collaborators—it unveils a complex tapestry of fear, shame, and the thirst for retribution.