How Have The Nazis Been Represented On Film?
The macabre past of Germany during the Nazi period is an emerging topic in films. The Nazis were political fascists whom were members of the National Socialist German Workers' Party, founded in Germany in 1919 and brought to power under Adolf Hitler in 1933. Directors and producers have made certain films in different ways as some have manipulated Nazi behaviour, while others have used hindsight to show the actual behaviour of the Nazis. Many people are fascinated by how Hitler could control the whole of Germany with all the shocking and barbaric acts of his regime. The Nazis have been represented in many different ways and some examples of the films I have been looking at are: Triumph of the Will, Cabaret, Schindler’s List and The Lion King. Triumph of the Will was produced in 1934, five years before World War II, as a documentary film written and directed by Leni Riefenstahl, a former actress. The film was a record of the 1934 Nazi Party Rally at Nuremburg. The political purpose of the film was to persuade Germans to support Hitler. The scene opens with a very graceful, ethirial and triumphant theme. Hitler is presented as a God-like, to the viewer, descending from the sky looking down on his people in Nuremburg. The opening camera shots are of stormy clouds and an over the shoulder shot is used here to show Hitler’s point of view. This shot tells us exactly what Hitler is seeing ahead of him- the historic German city of Nuremburg with its Reformation churches in Victorian styles. A great crescendo is built up here gradually and over the soundtrack, is a light version of the Wagnerian theme. As the plane descends and the clouds disperse, the medieval city of Nuremburg becomes more visible. At this point many obvious Nazi traits are seen. We get a glimpse of hundreds of brown shirted soldiers marching in order showing control, power, and most importantly unity. Nazi insignia on the new German flag are seen on every building, showing the viewer how much everyone apparently loves the new Nazi Germany. The flags try to make this scene look very patriotic along with the powerful orchestral Germanic music. Immediately the camera cuts to the airport; hundreds of worshippers have gathered there in order to greet Hitler’s approaching plane. As the aircraft door is being opened and Hitler has emerged from the aircraft, another over the shoulder shot is used to show the emotion of the happy ordinary Germans, not in Nazi uniform. This again shows it from Hitler’s point of view. He is shown as a lone figure greeting the cheering townspeople in his car motorcade into town. As for the lighting effect, a ray of sunlight reflects off Hitler’s palm during the Nazi salute. In the next scene, a young female child and her mother are captured giving Hitler flowers and smiling. There is a close up angle at Hitler’s friendly expression on his face, to show the viewer this apparently great and friendly leader. He is caring and this scene shows a stereotypical image of a politician. Before he pulls up to the hotel, there is a long shot at the motorcade rolling through the streets of Nuremburg. But more lighting effects are evident, when it is written in bright lights (bulbs) “HEIL HITLER”– (at the end of the clip). This lets the viewer imagine the power and popularity of Hitler. He is a celebrity, thus relating to Hollywood. The Triumph of the Will truly is a unique film. Leni Riefenstahl uses many new camera techniques, and though it is an artistic film in the presentation of the new Germany, we know as an audience that its ulterior motive is to persuade viewers to support the Nazi state. Seeing all the people with joyful appearances, would probably unsettle modern audiences of the film since we have the privilege of hindsight and to know the true destructive nature of the Nazi regime. We do not hear much dialogue in this scene, yet it is very effective with the usage of powerful, patriotic music. Cabaret is the second film I will be analysing. It is a musical drama released in 1972 and directed by Bob Fosse, but the scene I examined was set in 1931, shortly before Triumph of the Will was made and two years before Adolf Hitler came to power. There was one particular scene in this film and this was the ‘Tomorrow belongs to Me’ scene, especially the singing involved. As Brian and Max begin to sit and talk, we see that a young boy begins to sing. This boy is described as a fresh face, blond, blue-eyed Nazi boy- an idealistic Nazi. At first he may be considered like a boy scout who is innocent, but it is only when the camera pans down from a medium close-up of the boys face to the swastika on his arm, in which we believe he is a Nazi. He is not so innocent after all. The golden light is shone on him and the camera angle used on him was the same as it was on Hitler in Triumph of the Will. Clearly, Bob Fosse wants to create this effect and it is very successful. He uses satire- making fun of and belitting something through comedy. When this Nazi boy is singing, there are many close-up shots of faces in the crowd looking happy and they are paying careful attention to the boy, similar again to Triumph of the Will, except this time the boy takes the role of Hitler. Some faces in the crowd are blank and satisfied and they are not sure how to react with the song. But when they stand up and join in to sing in unison, they are very stern looking, full of hope and prosperity. Their reaction is one of serious contemplation. This part of the scene can cause some confusion to the reader, since these effects are used ironically. An old Jewish man is not participating with the crowd members singing in unison and we can suspect the boy’s motive- the song is only for German people.
