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Ro · 10-13-2008, 04:50 PM

The MacGuffins proudly select, with their 14th team selection and 357th overall pick, for entry in the War category:

Downfall (Der Untergang)

The war is lost. But if you think that I'll leave Berlin for that, you are sadly mistaken. I'd prefer to put a bullet in my head.

I'm thrilled to able to take this one so late in the draft. I had it pencilled in as one of the top 3 or 4 choices in the War category, and after the others went kinda early, I took a chance that this foreign language selection would slide down a little, perhaps because it's in German or that it's just been overlooked or not seen by many people.

It's a shame, if that's the case, because it's easily one of the best WWII films ever made, and contains what has to be the most accurate (and simply astonishing) portrayal of Hitler ever recorded on film. The film uses the also excellent book Inside Hitler's Bunker as its primary source material, and as such takes place almost entirely underground in the Nazi bunkers in Berlin during the last few days of The Fuhrer's life.

Part of the reason this film has been been so critically acclaimed (and also criticized) since its release is that it depicts the Nazis not as monsters like so many films in the past, but as complex human beings with three dimensional qualities and emotions. Bruno Ganz's Hitler is portrayed as a ruthless and frothing dictator, yes, but also a tortured, quiet black soul, whose irrational idiosyncracies and soft demeanor while espousing the tenets of the Nazi Party are given equal screen time. It is one of many virtuoso performances in the film.

There is a special "never seen before" quality about Downfall that makes it an especially important piece of work. Many scenes are unforgettable, particularily a chilling one in which Magda Goebbels carries out an unthinkable act in the name of The Fuhrer and his party. This is historical fiction at its best- highly accurate and detailed, psychologically complex, and a fully mesmerizing cinematic experience.

10-13-2008, 04:50 PM	#1251
Ro #1 Goaltender Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Kelowna Exp:	The MacGuffins proudly select, with their 14th team selection and 357th overall pick, for entry in the War category: Downfall (Der Untergang) The war is lost. But if you think that I'll leave Berlin for that, you are sadly mistaken. I'd prefer to put a bullet in my head. I'm thrilled to able to take this one so late in the draft. I had it pencilled in as one of the top 3 or 4 choices in the War category, and after the others went kinda early, I took a chance that this foreign language selection would slide down a little, perhaps because it's in German or that it's just been overlooked or not seen by many people. It's a shame, if that's the case, because it's easily one of the best WWII films ever made, and contains what has to be the most accurate (and simply astonishing) portrayal of Hitler ever recorded on film. The film uses the also excellent book Inside Hitler's Bunker as its primary source material, and as such takes place almost entirely underground in the Nazi bunkers in Berlin during the last few days of The Fuhrer's life. Part of the reason this film has been been so critically acclaimed (and also criticized) since its release is that it depicts the Nazis not as monsters like so many films in the past, but as complex human beings with three dimensional qualities and emotions. Bruno Ganz's Hitler is portrayed as a ruthless and frothing dictator, yes, but also a tortured, quiet black soul, whose irrational idiosyncracies and soft demeanor while espousing the tenets of the Nazi Party are given equal screen time. It is one of many virtuoso performances in the film. There is a special "never seen before" quality about Downfall that makes it an especially important piece of work. Many scenes are unforgettable, particularily a chilling one in which Magda Goebbels carries out an unthinkable act in the name of The Fuhrer and his party. This is historical fiction at its best- highly accurate and detailed, psychologically complex, and a fully mesmerizing cinematic experience. Last edited by Ro; 10-13-2008 at 05:00 PM.