A 2008 article in the German magazine Der Spiegel described SS chief Heinrich Himmler as one of the most brutal mass murderers in world history, concluding that without him, the Holocaust would not have occurred. The man behind the madness is the subject of Belgian-born, Israel-based filmmaker Vanessa Lapa's documentary, a work composed entirely of archival footage, much of it consisting of photos from Himmler's own personal collection with readings from his diaries and letters.