Director: Leni Riefenstahl
Year: 1935
Country: Germany
Language: German
Terrifying, shocking and profane. A paralyzing punch to the soul. Leni Riefenstahl proves that art can not only be serviceable to great evil but great propaganda. Yet, even though I am disgusted that a documentary glorifying the Third Reich has been made. I must admit that it is an important documentary with groundbreaking cinematography. The visuals within this film are so good that other filmmakers have paid homage to it in their films. The most famous homage being the medal ceremony at the end of Star Wars: A New Hope. As "entertainment" it is quite dull, perhaps if you are a historian or a nazi you would be intrigued but as a study of flawless camera work it is absolutely amazing.
Triumph of the Will records what it seems like millions of Nazi supporters at a Nazi rally on September of 1934 in Germany. Long stretches of soldiers of various duties line the hall in strict rigid formation, they are like cattle. They salute Hitler, he salutes back. Then the great evil speaks and they eat it up without question. We do not see how this rally was planned, it is not important. The propaganda film serves to show how organized and obedient Hitler's army was. Indeed it is frightening, at least from an anti-nazi perspective. Not a single person is seen in the wrong formation, or scratching their heads. They are like robots. Indeed so much like robots that they don't have a reaction when Hitler walks past them, stern and serious despite at least one of them likely needing to seriously use the washroom. If I was on the allied side in the 30's and saw this film I would have peed my pants in fear. This is an army that seemed united in its cause for world domination.
"Uncompromisingly the one and only power in Germany." this one quote showed exactly how mad Hitler was, and why the atrocities of the Holocaust were happening. Anybody who argued with the Fuhrer would meet his wrath. Is it surprising that all his soldiers were emotionless? No. For emotions would result in death. I feel incredibly bad for the people of Germany who had no real choice in the matter. Die in the concentration camps or work for Satan? A tough choice with no positive solution. Of course Riefenstahl has no eye for sympathy, her interest is showing mass conformity. The individual is dead and the perfectly framed shots of Hitler make him out to be somewhat of a messiah for the German people. Again, this is more a film for film & history scholars than the average filmgoer.
Riefenstahl used 30 cameras for her visual nazi epic. Only one is seen, none of her crew was visible either. Triumph of the Will is the ultimate propaganda film for the brainwashed masses. Every shot is made to seem like the nazi party was an incredibly well organized, well run group of robots who would do anything their master said. When "Seig Heil" is said by Hitler, a mass shout of voices echoes those words in perfect unity. Not a single voice is off, not a single voice can afford to be off. Though I'm sure Hitler's enormous ego would tell Riefenstahl to reshoot the scene again and again until it was perfect. It's very likely more than a few soldiers met their fates by the end of this picture.
In conclusion, Triumph of the Will is (sadly) one of the best made documentaries/propaganda films ever made. I'm sure in the late thirties it did wonders to help the self esteem of the nazi party as well as strike fear into the hearts of those opposed to them. Who wouldn't be afraid of a massive army of zombies that was slowly sweeping the globe. If you are involved in any aspect of film, you might find inspiration in this. If you are a history buff you might find this rather intriguing. From what I know about nazi Germany I can't help but be extremely sympathetic towards the masses of soldiers, who likely didn't choose to join Hitler. It's definitely not for everyone and if you find you are entertained while watching I would advise you to see a psychiatrist. Praise it! 4/5
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