Roman Polanski relates his scandal to new Dreyfus affair film

Roman Polanski, a director with a history rich in culture, filmmaking and scandal, has a latest storyline that touches on all: the Dreyfus affair. The Telegraph UK is among the first to report, and give a brief history lesson in case you need it. The controversy started in 1894, when Captain Alfred Dreyfus, a French and Jewish man, was convicted of passing French military secrets to Germany. He spent about five years in prison and underwent many trials, a case which had a larger political impact on the country and the conflict wasn't fully resolved until the 20th century. Dreyfus himself wasn't cleared of charges, but pardoned.

The 80-year-old director Polanski is of French (and Polish) descent, and relates to this story for another personal reason. Polanski was imprisoned in 1977 for "Unlawful Sexual Intercourse with a Minor." He parallels the two cases, telling the French radio station RTL, "media, like the army at the time or like any state institution, never want to admit to a mistake." He felt the media was never on his side: the right side.

Aside from the scandal (which never really ended -- women have spoken out since the initial case), Polanski's work has managed to gain a lot of attention from the film community. He is also a writer, producer and actor. Notable films he has directed include Rosemary's Baby in the 60s, Chinatown in the 70s and The Pianist in 2002, where he won an Academy Award for Best Director.

In initial talks of the film, the Los Angeles Times ran a statement from Polanski, giving the film salience on a more global, current scale, "In this way one can show its absolute relevance to what is happening in today's world -- the age-old spectacle of the witch hunt of a minority group, security paranoia, secret military tribunals, out-of-control intelligence agencies, governmental cover-ups and a rabid press." 

Do you think the film will get people talking about larger issues...or is this a publicity plan to use Polanski's notoriety to build film buzz?