Der Untergang

Perikato / Undergången / The Downfall. DE (c) 2004 Constantin Film. P+SC: Bernd Eichinger - based on books by Joachim Fest and Traudl Junge & Melissa Müller. D: Oliver Hirschbiegel. Starring Bruno Ganz (Adolf Hitler), Juliane Köhler (Eva Braun / Hitler), Alexandra Maria Lara (Traudl Junge), Ulrich Mattes (Joseph Goebbels), Corinna Harfouch (Magda Goebbels). DP: Rainer Klausmann. PD: Bernd Lepel. 150 min. Released by Sandrew, Finnish / Swedish subtitles by Paula Kaurismäki / Patrik Edman. Viewed in Kinopalatsi 1, Helsinki, 30 Jan 2005. On Hitler's and Nazi Germany's last days in Berlin, this is a strong entry in the history of the war film, the historical film, and the biopic. It's powerful but nuanced. It shows the monsters as human beings yet does not apologize them. It helps understand how it happened. The actors are excellent. The production values are very good. I saw the film on its premiere weekend, and quite evidently it is starting to grip a large audience in our country. ***