MovieChat Forums > Er ist wieder da (2017) Discussion > Yet another irony... (spoilers!)

Yet another irony... (spoilers!)

posted 6 years ago by AndyK (69)
3 replies | jump to latest

So the film determines that he is indeed the real Hitler, transported in time from the Furherbunker somehow. We can forgive the physical dissimilarities: height, eye color. But from every account I've ever read, Hitler was a dreadful bore one-on-one. He was awkward, pedantic, still, emotionless. While this Hitler was actually very charismatic with people on an individual basis, very persuasive & in his own way, sincere. No doubt the filmmakers are aware of that, but what choice did they have? Making a film, especially a comedy, featuring an actor who attempted to recreate the real Hitler's personality would have been unwatchable.

Still, I thought it an interesting decision to make him real, rather than uncover that he was some eccentric historian perhaps who finally went off the deep end.

[–] mobocracy (893) 5 years ago

I'm inclined to be skeptical of characterizations of Hitler that make him out to be uncharismatic. I don't know how you manage to establish an entirely new political order, in the most cut-throat environment, and stay on top of it the whole time without a shit-ton of charisma and personal confidence. Hitler didn't just build the Nazi movement, he *survived* the Nazi movement, including the decline of the Nazi state, until the very end.

I suspect that Hitler may not have been a cosmopolitan cocktail-party type of personality, considered trendy and likable by the kinds of superficial and status-oriented people of the time. That makes sense -- otherwise, he would have been a minor figure in the Viennese art scene, not a political leader of a radical political movement. But certainly he must have had a compelling and commanding personality that drew people in and made them want to follow him, especially people disaffected by the status quo.

Also, the Hitler in this scene is the Hitler who has had something like 10-15 years of leadership and command experience. He's not really afraid of people by this point, and he's generally convinced of his own ideology and the flaws of everyone else's, which adds a kind of gravitas.

[–] AndyK (69) 5 years ago

No doubt, Hitler was absolutely mesmerizing before a crowd. He would practice speaking & motions with his hands & arms before mirrors endlessly. But correspondents & diplomats who met with him personally consistently claimed he was awkward & not the least bit spontaneous one-on-one.

[–] RickGee (265) 5 years ago

I'm not sure about that. He apparently charmed a lot of people into giving him financial and political support. Wagner's widow was even one of his benefactors.