Downfall - Movie Review

The last ten days of Adolph Hitler and his Nazi regime are seen through the eyes of Traudl Junge, Hitler's personal secretary. In April of 1945, Allied forces were bearing down on Germany and Hitler retreated to a secret bunker in Berlin for his final days. Hitler's closest associates urged him to flee the city as the German forces were grossly outmatched, but Hitler held onto the illusion that Germany would still win. He spends his final days ranting and raving to Junge, blaming all around him as he tries to understand where his leadership went wrong. Finally, Hitler and several associates determine that it would be better to take their own lives rather than face the Allies after Germany's certain defeat.

I was very interested in this film since it was based on the memoirs of the real secretary to Adolph Hitler. However, I'll never know which parts are fact and which are embellished to make a good story. I thought that 2.5 hours was a little long to tell the story of Hitler's last 10 days; there are definitely scenes that could have been trimmed to keep the movie under 2 hours. It was fascinating to see the bunker Hitler hid in while his troops (and German civilians) were being killed by the Allies. Even while it was clear the Germans had lost the war and their plan of world domination, Hitler was to stubborn and selfish to surrender and killed himself instead. History buffs would probably enjoy this movie, but it was a bit much for me and the fact that it was in German with English subtitles made it seem long and tiring.

Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Bruno Ganz, Juliane Kohler, Alexandra Maria Lara

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.