Der Untergang (2004)

User Rating:

8.4/10   

Director:

Oliver Hirschbiegel

Writers:

Joachim Fest (book)
Traudl Junge (book) ...

Release Date:

16 September 2004 (Germany)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | History | War

Tagline:

April 1945, a nation awaits its...

Plot:

Traudl Junge (Lara), the final secretary for Adolf Hitler (Ganz), tells of the Nazi dictator's final days in his Berlin bunker at the end of WWII.

Plot Keywords:

Hitler | Bunker | Adolf Hitler | Secretary | Russian

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 15 wins & 13 nominations

Cast

Bruno Ganz	...	Adolf Hitler
Alexandra Maria Lara	...	Traudl Junge
Corinna Harfouch	...	Magda Goebbels
Ulrich Matthes	...	Joseph Goebbels
Juliane Köhler	...	Eva Braun
Heino Ferch	...	Albert Speer
Christian Berkel	...	Prof. Dr. Ernst-Günter Schenck
Matthias Habich	...	Prof. Dr. Werner Haase
Thomas Kretschmann	...	SS-Gruppenführer Hermann Fegelein
Michael Mendl	...	General der Artillerie Helmuth Weidling
André Hennicke	...	SS-Brigadeführer Wilhelm Mohnke
Ulrich Noethen	...	Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler
Birgit Minichmayr	...	Gerda Christian
Rolf Kanies	...	General der Infanterie Hans Krebs
Justus von Dohnanyi	...	General der Infanterie Wilhelm Burgdorf

Also Known As:

Downfall (UK) (USA)
Der Untergang - Hitler und das Ende des 3. Reichs (Germany) (working title)
La caduta - Gli ultimi giorni di Hitler (Italy)
The Downfall (literal English title)
The Downfall: Hitler and the End of the Third Reich (USA)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, disturbing images and some nudity.

Runtime:

156 min | 178 min (extended version)

Country:

Germany | Italy | Austria

Language:

German | Russian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Taiwan:R-12 | Malaysia:18SG | Philippines:R-13 | Australia:MA | Italy:T | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | France:U (with warning) | Argentina:16 | Brazil:16 | Finland:K-15 | Germany:12 (bw) | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:15A | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R13 | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Spain:18 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Bavaria Filmstudios, Geiselgasteig, Grünwald, Bavaria, Germany

Company:

Constantin Film Produktion

Trivia:

Christian Berkel, who portrays Schenck, stated his own background is not too far from his character. His father was also a doctor during the war, arrested by the Russians afterward, then released. His mother's side, however, was Jewish. Almost all of his relatives on her side, save his grandmother and two cousins, were lost in the camps.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Magda Goebbels is laying the playing-cards on the table, there is a cut which makes her repeat placing the last card in the row.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Traudl Junge: I've got the feeling that I should be angry with this child, this young and oblivious girl. Or that I'm not allowed to forgive her for not seeing the nature of that monster. That she didn't realise what she was doing. And mostly because I've gone so obliviously...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in GG 19 - Eine Reise durch Deutschland in 19 Artikeln (2007)

Soundtrack:

Blutrote Rosen

Impressive achievement, realistic and shocking

This film definitely is a must-see because of the incomparable degree of realism displayed in it. Direction, camera and acting are of an unparalleled level and make you, as the viewer, feel as if you are actually in Berlin, 1945, and in the Führer's bunker. The film does not provide any commentary or judgment, it just shows facts.

The film is criticized because it gives the Nazi's a human face, but this is exactly it's strongest point: the Nazi's were not extraterrestrial monsters, they were as human as you and I. The image of Hitler crying of sorrow because all is lost, is still burned on my retina.

In my opinion, this is a film that should be shown in schools to illustrate the Second World War with. It is probably impossible to provide a more realistic account, without *any* form of judgment.

A major achievement, even for Germany as a whole. It is very brave to create such a realistic film about one's own past.