The Military Channel was playing an old 60s movie “Hitler” and it got me thinking. I have never seen this movie before, but it sucks. Historical mistakes asside, it was just written badly. The guy playing Hitler, who would follow a social retard like him?
This may never fly in hollywood because he has been made such a boogeyman and not the nut job that he was, but wouldn’t it be cool to see a movie about how he became an anti-semite (lots of good stuff there, he was awarded the iron cross because of the recommendation of a Jewish officer. Or even going back further to his teen years when he lost his mother to cancer and her doctor was Jewish, when he came to power he got that guy out of the country because he knew exactly what he was about to do - but in his own insane mind it didn’t include ‘that jew’.
I am thinking a Hanibal Lectur kind of thing, but more on the evil side (lets face it, hannibal was no Adolf). A movie showing a truely diseased mind getting worse and worse as time goes on, but the truely horrifying thing is that this sick mind inspired millions into the bloodiest war in human history.
Only problem is that you don’t want to comepletely portray him as Hannibal Lecture, because in the end a lot of people who have seen the original and the following movies kind of liked him. Couple that with the fact that if you want to portray Hitler accurately he has to be Charismatic. The last thing anyone would want walking out of the movie theater is to have less loathing of Hitler.
It would take a hell of a director, and some really talented actors to pull it off.
I have this movie on VHS tape because its not on DVD. I consider it a comedy and enjoy it to no end. Richard Basehard is the admiral in voyage to the bottom of the sea and his shatneresqe acting and poor German accent is really funny.
The end before he shoot himself is the best moment ( his little soliloquy about why he did what he did is very funny)
He did play a Waffen SS Sgt. In a 2 part episode of Combat! and was quite good in that.
Yeah I would love to see a movie about Hitler’s youth (pre military, but also the military days and the war’s aftermath). The challenge for the actor would be pinning down not just what makes a young Hitler tick but why other people saw him as a leader.
Speaking of Hitler movies, Bruno Ganz was great as senile old Hitler in Downfall. While Hitler is clearly insane and the other characters are aware of it, the endearing qualities that made the men loyal to a fault can also be sensed.
A history of Hitler from 1920-1941 might not be too bad.
Downfall is the best Hitler movie, but it only covers the last few days of his life.
I think a good Hitler bio would be very difficult to make correctly. Its not easy to know who Adolf Hitler was. I think making a film about him is important though because he was easily one of the most interesting and influential people in all the 20th century.
I’d like to make a number of points on how I think a proper Hitler film would be done.
1. It cant only be about how Hitler was a hateful racist who wanted everyone dead. Every eight year old can tell you that, and it would not make for interesting viewing.
2. It has to be a tragedy with Hitler as the tragic hero. This might seem distasteful because it perhaps would generate sympathy for Hitler within the audience. This, however is precisely the point as it is the only way to do justice for the victims of Hitler.
3.Hitler as a tragic hero does not make the film pro-nazi. He was an outcast, below average in many was, yet through sheer belief in himself reached the verge of global domination. He must be portrayed as inspirational.
4. I like Jens idea. Perhaps 1920-1940, the film could end with Hitler strutting around the Eiffel Tower, no need to see his downfall if by that point in the film the audience has a clear picture of who Hitler was, the rest is history.
5. The moral of the film needs to be something along the lines of, there is a little Hitler or Nazi in all of us. Throughout time humans have been drawn to worshiping one man as there savior, Moses, Budha, Christ, St. Paul, Mohammed, Stalin, Mao, the Kims, Saddam. No matter how modern/advanced/civilized a society becomes, critical thinking and constant vigilance is the only way to protect freedom.
Yeah I would love to see a movie about Hitler’s youth (pre military, but also the military days and the war’s aftermath). The challenge for the actor would be pinning down not just what makes a young Hitler tick but why other people saw him as a leader.
One movie along these lines is “Max”, which came out in 2002. It’s historical fiction, not a documentary: Wikipedia describes it as “a semi-historical film portraying Adolf Hitler after his military discharge at the end of World War I.”
yea but that guy is terrible and looks nothing like Hitler. He played the main stripper in the Full Monty and is pretty much typecast in light comedic roles. He can’t possibly be convincing as Hitler and i have the DVD. That movie was broadcast on TV originally.
George C Scott did do a great job as Mussolini, which was also broadcast on TV ( about 1992)
Speaking of Hitler movies, Bruno Ganz was great as senile old Hitler in Downfall. While Hitler is clearly insane and the other characters are aware of it, the endearing qualities that made the men loyal to a fault can also be sensed.
Ironically, in the movie The Boys From Brazil, Bruno Ganz played the professor who helped the hero figure out that Dr. Mengele had manufactured several dozen clones of Hitler.
Alec Guiness – good old Obi-wan Kenobi himself – played Hitler in the movie “Hitler: The Last Ten Days.” As I recall, he did a pretty good job. The last scene is an ironic commentary on the hold which dictators have over their subjects while they are in power. After Hitler (who strictly prohibited smoking in his presence) has shot himself, Goebbels enters his room while the camera stays outside with the people who were in attendance. Goebbels then returns and states in a grave tone that “The Fuhrer is dead.” Everyone promptly takes out a cigarette and lights up.
Hitler Rise of Evil is EPIC.
That is one of the best pictures regarding this subject matter I can ever think of.
The choice for Hitler was a excellent one, he plays the role VERY well. The Intensity, the Insanity, the Anger. And the Stash. Who could have done a better job?
“Our Enemies walk among us, and who is this enemy?” Crowd “ZA JEWS!” Adolf-“THE JEWS!”
Great flic… Many morals and lessons to be learned, when to take a stand, how to, as well as the ugliness of subversion. Everyone should see it.
