Downfall (DVD)

Marking the resurgence in German cinema, continued by the likes of The Lives of Others, Downfall examines events surrounding Adolf Hitler's final days leading to his death in a Berlin Bunker on 30 April 1945. Perhaps the most incredible thing about the film is that it manages to turn Adolf Hitler into a human being. Bear in mind here, we are talking about one of the most evil men in history, someone who was personally responsible for the deaths of over 6 million Jews. Yet, despite knowing all of this, it is almost impossible not to feel sorry for the tired, broken old man who eventually commits suicide. Of course, this made the film hugely ...

Downfall, made in 2004 in Germany, is a film about the end of the Second World War (in Europe, anyway). It focuses on the battle for Berlin, as Soviet troops move inexorably onwards, and specifically on Hitler in his bunker, as the beleaguered Führer and his henchmen contemplate the end. It’s one of the best recent films I’ve seen. The film is based on two books. Inside Hitler’s Bunker, by Joachim Fest (an acclaimed historian who’s written several important books about the Third Reich), is a general account of the last few days of the dictator’s life. Until The Final Hour was written by Traudl Junge, one of Hitler’s secretaries, who stayed with him until the ...

This move is most accurate movie regarding the dying moments of the Third Reich. Oliver Hirschbiegel is a talented German director and obviously the making of this film must have been a stressful job for the director, writer and cast. After all the German public are not over their perceived national guilt about the atrocities of the Nazi regime. +++++WARNING SPOILER+++++ This movie attempt to break the common ground that Nazi party members have to be portrayed with at least blood dripping from their mouths and spotting devil horns and breathing fire. The Downfall attempts just to portray the downfall of the regime, the disillusioned people, the fear ...