Downfall

 

 

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Quite simply, this movie is essential viewing for anyone interested in WWII. Bruno Ganz is one of Switzerland's finest actors, so convincing in this role as Hitler, that after a few minutes into the film you would swear you are watching the real fuhrer. The film has stirred up contraversy because it shows Hitler for the man he was, both the insane, obsessed madman and the soft hearted gentleman he was to his non-military staff. The movie is a chilling insight into the Nazi mind, and shows a perspective never seen before. It does stick to the truth, at least as told by Hitler's last secretary who spent the last few weeks with him. Excellent! P.S. - The film is in German and subtitled, but still well worth it.

Downfall impressed me greatly on a number of different levels. It can't be easy to make a movie showing your country's destruction and acknowledging the atrocities your own countrymen committed. The fact that Germany won't allow publication or importing of Mein Kampf even as an historical document has always suggested to me a national desire to just pretend the events of the past never happened. For obvious reasons, I was exceedingly interested in watching this film. How would Hitler be portrayed? Would there be any mention of the Holocaust? I had these and many other questions. All those questions were answered with a surprisingly nuanced film of great complexity and depth.

Downfall chronicles not only Hitler's last days inside the bunker but the immediate aftermath of his death and Germany's surrender. To a significant degree, that story is reflected through the eyes of Traudl Junge, one of Hitler's personal secretaries. Video clips of an interview with the elderly Junge from Blind Spot: Hitler's Secretary (2002) frame the presentation (ringing rather hollow, if you ask me - but that's really neither here nor there). In the claustrophobic confines of Hitler's bunker, we witness the final days of the already broken Fuhrer, the individual dramas of those in Hitler's inner circle as they wrestle with the decision to leave or stay, and the total destruction of German society along with National Socialism.

The treatment of Hitler is, to my mind, exceedingly well done. Hitler was a much more complicated man than many give him credit for. His personal demons came to consume him, but there was a human side to the man, as well - and this film brings that out in a very nuanced way. This is not to say that Downfall makes of Hitler a sympathetic character - not in the slightest. His hate and venom are never far from the forefront, but this actually stands to reinforce his exceedingly human weaknesses. His mood swings are severe, especially as the end draws near - and he's not always rational. Betrayal drives him into a fury, especially the ultimate betrayal by Himmler. Yet he remains lucid enough to plan his death in an effort to keep his remains out of the hands of the Russians.

Almost as fascinating as Hitler himself, in both history as well as this film, are the Goebbels. Joseph Goebbels himself remained loyal to the very end, and it can be said that his wife Magda was even more dedicated to Hitler and National Socialism than he was. She, after all, killed all six of her children rather than let them grow up in a world without National Socialism - and that scene proves to be the most riveting of the entire film. Eva Braun is an almost extraordinary character in the film; maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think the filmmakers gave an accurate picture of her at all.

Then there are the military leaders who watch Hitler give orders their decimated armies cannot possibly follow. Loyalty is a powerful force in these men's lives - but their loyalty is to Germany rather than Hitler himself. For this reason, they are the ones asking Hitler to spare the German people and to think about ending the war. For some, though, the distaste of Germany's surrender from World War I overrides everything else in their determination to fight to the death - and I think that was a most telling point for the film to make. The only real problem I had with the film was the fact that I was hard pressed to identify several of the most prominent characters. All of the actors were made to resemble the men they played, but - even though I'm familiar with most of the historical figures - I really couldn't figure out the identities of several characters over the course of the film.

You may be wondering if the film actually shows Hitler's suicide on the screen - I wondered that myself. Unfortunately, I'm not going to tell you how the scene plays out. You will find a significant number of fairly graphic scenes in the film, though. It truly is a realistic presentation of Germany's darkest days, with the increasingly devastating destruction of Berlin going hand in hand with the physical and mental breakdown of the man ultimately responsible for it all. Honestly, I never expected any German filmmaker to produce such an honest, complex, awe-inspiring motion picture about their most infamous national leader. Downfall is a must-see.

"Downfall" is a film that tells us about Hitler's last days, when the war was already lost and before he committed suicide with Eva Braun (Juliane K'hler). Truth to be told, this movie is extremely well-made, and even though it doesn't make direct reference to all the people Hitler (played by Bruno Ganz) killed, it highlights the fact that he was an extremely unbalanced person capable of doing that and much more.

Director Oliver Hirschbiegel weaves an engaging if sometimes shocking story, based on true events, as remembered by people who lived with Hitler during his last days. One of them, Traudl Junge (played Alexandra Maria Lara), was nothing less than one of Hitler's secretaries, and as such a privileged spectator of what was happening in the bunker where Hitler and his entourage stayed. The drama of war is well depicted, as is the fanaticism of many of Hitler's followers, and the desperation of former adherents that ultimately realize that they have been following a madman.

Those who already know at least a little about this period will recognize characters such as Heinrich Himmler (Ulrich Noethen), Joseph Goebbels (Ulrich Matthes) or Albert Speer (Heino Ferch), and will also probably learn about others that played a part during those last days. On the other hand, if you don't know a thing about this period, don't let that discourage you: you can always learn, and this is a good opportunity to do so.

All in all, I highly recommend this film. It is long, but thoroughly engaging, and not to be missed. I would like to add that if after seeing "Downfall" you feel like watching a documentary about the same subject, "Blind spot: Hitler's secretary" is also excellent.

Belen Alcat

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5.0 out of 5 stars Hitler contrary Stalin
I had chance to witness reaction of dedicated communist to death of Stalin in the spring 1953. Communists were thinking that the end of the world was coming, what will happen to... Read more

Published 1 month ago by Levap

5.0 out of 5 stars Utterly Brilliant
Utterly brilliant. Thoroughly gripping - by virtue of its accuracy in all respects, given it was based upon the memoir of one of Hitler`s personal secretaries. Read more

Published 7 months ago by S.H.

5.0 out of 5 stars Truly amazed by Ganz's rendition
You want a real treat? Watch this marvelous movie in German, with English subtitles. You'll then get the true essence of Bruno Ganz incredible rendition of Hitler. Read more

Published 8 months ago by Marc Ranger

5.0 out of 5 stars Downfall is a captivating story

This was an excellent film that gives a glimpse of what it must have been like during the last weeks of the Nazis reign of terror.

Published 9 months ago by Joe H

1.0 out of 5 stars Non disponible en version française
Excellent film. Malheureusement, ce DVD n'est pas disponible chez Amazon.ca en version française. Il n'est pas doublé, ni sous-titré. Read more

Published on Jan 31 2010 by Andre Fortin

5.0 out of 5 stars Phenomenal...
With absolutely flawless acting, Bruno Ganz delivers an amazing portrayal of the most notorious man of history...

All around the acting was superb. Read more

Published on Nov 24 2009 by Jonathan E. Thomas

4.0 out of 5 stars good but
good movie but adolf hitler looked thougher than that in real life . and was.

Published on July 7 2009 by Gilbert Michaud

5.0 out of 5 stars Exceptional movie!
An incredible performance by Bruno Ganz! You will be drawn into the movie and not want it to end. Brilliant!

Published on Mar 7 2009 by Jane Humphrey

5.0 out of 5 stars Downfall
The actors give us the best portrayals of the individuals Hitler and Eva Braun. My partner lived through it all being in the military during the closing days of WWII. Read more

Published on Feb 14 2009 by Don Madge

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful depiction of the end days in the bunker
A very powerful movie showing the end days of Nazi Germany. It is well acted and shows the different types of people around Hitler apart from Hitler himself. Read more

Published on Mar 22 2008 by Aeneas

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