Der Untergang

I have seen many films about WWII, but never quite the way Der Untergang is presented. This is the first film about WWII through the eyes of another country I have ever seen, in this case through the eyes of the Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and Germany. The film, although completely in German with English subtitles, makes it's point soon after it starts. Within minutes from the start of the film, Hitler is advised that the Soviet troops are about twelve kilometers from the Berlin center, and have already opened fire.
The fury of Hitler at this moment, and it continues for the duration of Der Untergang, is extraordinarily portrayed and you can almost sense the fear of this loud, firm spoken Furer. At this point I was pretty much fully engaged in this foreign film. The battle scenes, although brief, were equally intense as Hitler himself. The Soviet soldiers were never actually introduced or seen in the film, and I think this was to give the viewer the same feeling of mysterious fear that the actors and actresses were feeling. From beginning to end Der Untergang follows a linear chronology (249) with great climax, and a suicide filled intense ending.
In the face of danger, and utter hopelessness Hitler remained persistent in his ruling and insists on further fighting. He insisted on either being dead, or continuing Hitler Germany. As horrible as his intentions were, his pride and patriotism was easily visible. I mention this because not only does the film portray great scenes and intensity, but it provides understanding of feelings and thoughts, which for me at least, is tough to do.
Another thing that I found particularly interesting was the scarce use of music. For the majority of the film there is no music, only the words and gestures of the cast. For me, this contributed to the intensity of the film. When music was used, it was often a light, smooth, climatic orchestra that was perfectly embedded in each chosen scene. I can not mention intensity enough when discussing this film, and also contributing to this mentioned intensity is not what you would typically call music, but in this case I think the sound effects and the realistic sounds ofartillery and tanks is safe in itself to call music. Perhaps that is why actual music was so scarcely used.
In the end of the film, high ranking soldiers began dropping like flies, most by way of escape, and the most loyal by way of suicide. Not only did five of Hitler's most loyal advisors and generals commit suicide out of pure fear, but Hitler himself, along with his wife, committed suicide in the face of hopelessness . Throughout the film Hitler should no compassion for anything, especially the German people. This cold-heartedness persists right up until the moment he commits suicide, and dies as he lived, with no emotion. I think Oliver Hirshbiegel stresses suicide so much towards the end of the film, not only to provide the understanding of the fear at the end of Hitler's reign, but also to symbolize the situation Hitler, through his persistence and fantasy, put Germany into.

Work's Cited (photo)

Scott Morris, Hitler, 2004. Oneliner.com Accessed Feb. 19, 2010