Podcast: Tori Potenza on ‘The Cremator’

When you barter exclusively in underseen horror films, you don't expect to have a guest pull something from the Criterion Collection for an upcoming episode. But that's exactly what film critic and programmer Tori Potenza did for this week's episode. Her pick? Juraj Herz's The Cremator, a surreal and horrific antifascist film that remains eerily relevant in today's society.

The Cremator opens on Karel Kopfrkingl (Rudolf Hrusinsky), a devoted family man in the pre-war Czech Republic. Karel leads a comfortable life, coasting on his mother-in-law’s dowry while earning a little extra as the lead technician at the town’s crematorium. Sure, he’s a little odd, but he loves his work and dotes after his children. But when Karel reunites with an old Austrian army buddy, he slowly becomes drawn into the rising tide of Nazism. “Suffering,” he says, “is a great evil, and we must do all we can to alleviate it” – and what better way to alleviate suffering than to watch the whole world burn?

In this short excerpt from the episode, Potenza describes the horrifying ease with which Karel is able to be convinced into becoming a proud Nazi member.

It's really intersting how [Karel is first] portrayed as this loving father, but it's immediately brought up that his wife and other matriarchs are keeping him [financially] afloat. Off the bat, you're like, "This guy's going to have an inferiority complex." There's so much [context that makes him] the perfect target for becoming a Nazi. No sense of identity, clearly easily manipulated, [repressing] sexual desires that are immediately used against him. "Join the Nazis, we have hot blondes!" That's what gets him to betray everyone in his life, which is fucking insane.

The Cremator episode of the Certified Forgotten podcast with Tori Potenza is now available to stream on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music, or the podcast platform of your choice.