Downfall: A disturbing and great film.

Just finished watching this tour-de-force recreation of the last days in Hitlers bunker. This is such a disturbing movie on so many levels, one of which is the effective humanization of some of the most infamous monsters in history. It is however, I think undoubtably a great film. One of the greatest dangers is to treat the past as just that the past. To characterize people like Hitler and all of the Nazis as some type of comic book super villain, which I am afraid is all to often done, is to have leaned nothing from this horrible lesson. One must clearly understand that Hitler, Goebbels and the rest were real human beings with everything that that entails, not comic book characters. This realization should deepen our terror of these events, not lessen them. Downfall takes a big step in this direction, and in so doing will no doubt be a very controversial film.

I had forgotten about it and just added it to my netflix queue. There's no release date yet.

It was nominated for best foriegn film at the Oscars and I remember hearing about the controversy. Basically it was because the director humanized them.

I've always felt this was important because it gives us a greater understanding of the whys and hows. It's easy to say they were evil and I consider that a shallow explanation.

I can't wait to see it.

(1) This is a long movie at over 2 1/2 hours

(2) The film assumes that you are familiar with all the characters and events involved and makes little attempt to "bring the audience up to speed". However this in no way destroys ones ability to enjoy the film. It does mean that you might enjoy it even more though if you read up on the events that took place in the bunker during the last days. I know I wish I had done so.

(3) I did not feel it was a great film until the very ending. There are several points in the film where you may feel that it just isn't working or that the movie plods along to slowly. However hopefully by the end the movie as a whole will have a different effect.

History is filled with them. Japan was just as bad and the head of the country was left in power(place would be a better word) and I think he was known to have OK all that went on. We wanted him there to keep the people in line. Japan did not kill Jews but the people of Korea, China and the Southern part where all the Islands are. I am not sure why we do not know that history as well as we know the one in Europe.By- the- way Hitler killed more Russians than Jews but for some reason we do not look at that as what it is either.

due to the lingering effects of the Cold War.

A documentary interview with Traudl Junge recounting the events that are depicted in Downfall.

Nazi Germany is one of my special historical interests.