Errol Morris documents a cinematic portrait of timid eccentric Fred A. Leutcher, Jr. The rise of this man begins with his successful career as an American execution device and designer (the electric chair, lethal injection, and the gallows). And his fall, midway through designing a better way to use the noose, or "gallows," he's employed by Holocaust deniers to collect "proof" that the gas chambers in Auschwitz were intended for that purpose. Mostly through close up and dreamlike montages, Leutcher's personae becomes much of a lark. How is the audience supposed to view this character? Is he good or evil? That's where Errol Morris shines in this ambiguous documentary presenting the difficulty of simplistic moral values. Another takeaway from the documentary is the irony that eviscerates Leutcher's life. For instance (SPOILERS), the states that hire hime for these capital punishment devices later refuse to deal with him once he writes the "Leutcher Report" and makes connections with Neo-Nazis and Holocaust deniers. Much of this documentary depends on the individual's amusement with the character, which can be sometimes difficult because he is an oddball and his ramblings are quite dispiriting (there's a scene with an elephant being electrocuted). Also, one of my pet peeves in talking head documentaries consists of an edit being obvious to cut out extraneous dialogue or the scene cuts to black to reorientate the viewer back to the story, this happens several times. Although Mr. Death succumbs to some distressing moments, Errol Morris captivates his audience with irony and judgmental restraint to allow the audience to make our own impressions of this milquetoast.

Leuchter is one amazing guy. This is a guy who became one of the US's foremost experts on death engineering - he designed and built/rebuilt several execution devices for death rows throughout the nation. Then, tragically, he took it upon himself to travel to Auschwitz and hammer bits off the gas chambers to bring home for cyanide testing. His conclusion: no-one was gassed there. Oops. Then he compounded his mistake by testifying for Ernst Zundel and speaking at holocaust-revisionist meets throughout the world.So, an excellent subject for a movie, and Morris does an okay job. There are a few faults. The quality of some of the interview footage is quite poor. And there is the question of the reconstructions. Leuchter provided Morris with plenty of "home movies" which are incorporated into the film, so the function of the reconstructions seems merely to be to reinforce in our minds the dramatic qualities of a lot of the actions Leuchter performed. Personally, I could've done without them.10/10 for the subject, 6/10 for the film-making, gives 8/10 overall.

This documentary is a classic study of the tragedy that invariably occurs when religious dogma collides with actual facts. Normally the two rarely cross paths, because people are loath to submit cherished beliefs to the light of objective analysis. This is especially the case with religicized issues like the Holocaust. Regardless of what one thinks of this issue, there is always at least two sides to every event in human history, the Holocaust is no exception.While everyone has been made aware of the Zionist version of what occurred in Nazi camps such as Auschwitz, there has always been another side to this story, that has never been allowed a fair hearing! Suppression, slander, and relentless propaganda, has relegated this alternative version of events, to relative obscurity. Enter Mr. Leuchter, his honesty and professionalism, allowed him to meticulously investigate the fundamental premise of an issue that has literally become a religion in itself! Unlike his hopelessly biased opponents, he was able to remain completely objective throughout this very trying ordeal. The result was perhaps the first completely independent assessment of the merits of the issue of homicidal gas chambers in the Holocaust. Regardless of how one feels about this, Leuchter's investigation produced conclusive scientific results, that prove the infamous homicidal gas chambers in places like Auschwitz show no traces of cyanide gas! This can only be the case, if this central claim of the Holocaust, was false to began with! This of course is not out of the question, since the Holocaust has been of immeasurable political and economic value to Zionist interests.On the other hand, Leuchter's findings are a bolt of lightning in the name of truth, over blind belief, and finally sets the record straight, after these many years of erroneous history about the Holocaust. While most true holocaust believers have no use for these disturbing facts, those who understand that the truth is always of greater value, than any political agenda or belief, will welcome these startling revelations. This of course has nothing to do with hatred of Jews, but everything to do with historical revision, and correcting erroneous views of an important period of human history. As with anyone who goes against the powerful forces of political and religious orthodoxy, Mr. Leuchter paid a high price for his honesty and steadfast expression of the right of free speech. The contrast between Leuchter and the lab scientist who chose to protect himself and his company, by conveniently attempting to sabotage the results of his own unbiased tests, could not be greater! This is after all, what most men would do when facing the wrath of such ruthless foes. Leuchter on the other hand, courageously stood his ground, as a man of honesty, and integrity, in the face of a Holocaust industry, intent on crushing those who dare to question the accepted teaching on the Holocaust. For those hopelessly biased in favor of the orthodox Holocaust narrative, this film will be of little value. For those who remain of open mind, and able to appreciate the considerable loss of freedom in the west, to powerful special interests and pressure groups, this film provides a sobering look at the lengths the high and mighty will go, to destroy the lives of honest men, as well as how the hatred of those completely blinded by their beliefs, serves as another weapon, in the fight against the truth.

Despite your political views on the topics of capital punishment and/or The Holocaust, this film is an interesting expose' into ONE man's intellectual, emotional and spiritual drives. An allusion to his upbringing and guidances was particularly fascinating, to me. One of the truest of documentaries I've seen. Thankfully, the filmmakers avoided dramatizing or projecting, to any great degree. It was, perhaps a bit conclusive. However, the film did not insult my intelligence. It left some things to the imagination, which I appreciate. It has led me to further study of the man, and the topics presented. It was also quite visually appealing. What more can you ask?