In the summer of 2001, 75-year-old Mathi Schenk returns to Poland, revisiting a pivotal chapter of his life. He now lives in eastern Belgium, territory annexed by Germany after the 1940 invasion. At 18, Mathi was forced to serve in the German army. He arrived in Warsaw during the Warsaw Uprising in August 1944 and was assigned to the SS Dirlewanger Brigade. Over 63 days of intense fighting, witnessing immense brutality against the city's inhabitants, he endured unimaginable horrors. Later, while fleeing the advancing Red Army, wounded Mathi was hidden from the Russians by Polish farmers in their village, despite his German uniform.
