The Passion of the Anti-Christ

Rating: 9/10 (4 August 2005)

I call this the "Passion of the Anti-Christ" because there are, although strained, similarities in how this movie effect me.
This movie is about a character from history that is larger than history. Hitler has become a symbol of evil, and certainly I am not the first person to place Adolf Hitler as the ultimate nemesis anti-Christ. But this is the surface of this movie.
Underneath, this movie is about the German people. The ability of one man to take advantage of the post-WWI trauma of a culture and manipulate it until the lines of compassion and inhumanity become blurred. Conformity and hypocrisy were not the only traits of the German people.
I have always been unable to create a scenario in which I could see how anyone could justify Hilter's world as a good thing. Even with the fear of the power of the Nazi party, the end of war should have given those with fear of the government should have been emboldened.
But this portrayal creates a very real world. There were those in Hitler's inner circle who were fanatical followers, but that was not true of everyone. What we do see is a culture who in its last days floundered to grasp onto any hope-- hope to keep out the Russians, hope to keep the national pride that Hitler brought them from the ashes of a great depression, and the hope that the continued blind faith they gave to the "Fuhrer" would take them through.
It was amazing that even in the last hours of Hitler's life the power he commanded. Even in his seemingly "normal" understated life those closest to him worshiped him.
In his "work life," generals would bicker and plead with their leader on the last moments to end the insanity, but never once disobeyed an order, even when it was to submit themselves to be shot.
Just like "the Passion," there is a message there that is important to us as humans. It is a warning about the tragedy of man and our ability to give our free will up in exchange for group think. It is also a message that evil is only the face of the movement, and that the people behind the mask are just like you and me.
The fact that anyone has the potential to be evil. Even worse, that we can all delude ourselves that the horror within can easily be confused for passion, loyalty, and good.
It is a hard movie to watch, because it is so well done that it is easy to look past the iconic mustache, swastikas and clicking heels and look at a people much like ourselves and think "There but by the grace of God go I."