extremely impressive

Rating: Null/10 (25 September 2004)

I have seen the movie today and I must say, it is the most impressive German movie since "The boat".
Hitler, Goebbels with his wife Magda, the generals Keitel and Jodl and the other leading Nazis are surrounded in Berlin by Russian troops a few days before the end of the war in europe. They commit suicide, fight and die or try to escape.
The film was narrated out of the sight of the young girl, which was Hitlers secretary, Traudl Junge. As far as I know, the movie make only a few little historic mistakes (not important), the film is mainly based of the memories of Junge. She survived and died two years ago in 2002.
Swiss actor Bruno Ganz plays Hitler in a realistic way which nobody else has played before. The film shows the madness of Hitler and his inner circle in the last days of WWII. For example directly before he kills himself Hitler married his girlfriend Eva Braun. And the registrar asked really, if Hitler has his identity card and if he is really no Jew, because it is official regulation. Goebbels have to remember the officer that he is talking to Hitler...!
"Untergang" concentrates on a few persons: Hitler, Junge, Magda Goebbels, who killed her own children with poison and some other. So some important Nazis are not detailed enough, perhaps that the weakness of the film. But the main persons are played so intensive, its more than enough for a legendary movie.
Besides the film has one of the best sounds I have ever heard. It makes war as real as movies can. Perhaps only the first minutes of "Private Ryan" can compare with it. Thats why I tell everybody: Don't look it from DVD, but in a theater.
Germany has decided to nominate "Der Untergang" for the Academy Award (Foreign language). That's why there must be an English version, whether with subtitles or dubbed. And the German producer and screenplay-writer Bernd Eichinger (Producer: The Name of the Rose, Resident Evil, House of the spirits) is experienced enough to do this in the right way.
Harald Paumer