Traudl Junge of Munich became the secretary of Adolf Hitler in 1942. She recounts the Führer’s final days (20th April to 30th April of 1945) in his Berlin bunker at the end of World War Two.
The Führer is shown as a man close (or beyond) to breakdown. Blinded by his passions and his beliefs, he chooses to abandon reason after hope has abandoned him.
Bruno Ganz, the legendary Swiss actor, becomes Adolf Hitler. He gives a virtuoso performance, pushing his Himmel über Berlin, Der high along my must-watch pipeline. Alexandra Maria Lara is very believable as the young secretary trapped by her curiosity and inability to return to her hometown and confused about where fate will take her. She’s very well-cast. There are several other memorable characters… Eva Braun, Mrs. Goebbels, Prof. Dr. Werner Haase and Peter Kranz. A good ensemble cast. Nervousness, helplessness, hopelessness, desperation… you can find these in each of the characters.
Rather than using the demoniacal image that Hitler will continue to enjoy forever, Oliver Hirschbieger attempts to portray him as a failed inhuman human.
Based on Traudl Junge’s own book and other historical facts, Untergang, Der remains dispassionate throughout. Watch the movie for a more human perspective of the Führer and the Nazis.
This movie review has been moved from my old archives elsewhere.
Image Source: Official Der Untergang Website
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The phrase “more human perspective of the Führer and the Nazis” is amusingly ironical.
But the presence of present tense tenses me a bit.