Film of the Day: 50
Triumph of the Will (1935)
Back in 1933, there were many changes going on in Germany, for the worst. Hitler came to power in January and many tried to leave the country in fear of the worst.
Even legendary German film-maker Fritz Lang left just after making The Testament of Dr Mabuse (which was being banned as it was said to be an anti-Nazi film). And today that very year, all political parties were deemed illegal, except of course for the evil Nazi party.
Two years after, Leni Riefenstahl directed Triumph of the Will under the order of Hitler himself and is about the 1934 Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg where over 700,000 Nazi supporters attended. Hitler also commissioned the film and was an unofficial executive producer.
Like The Birth of a Nation, this became one of the most controversial films of all time as it represented pure evil. Yet it has gone down in history as one of the best-known examples of propaganda in film history.
Asides from it's subject, it is a revelation in film-making and has influenced many film-makers over the years, including Charlie Chaplin, who was the first to use it's imagery in his parody of Nazism The Great Dictator. Mick Jagger apparently told Riefenstahl that he has watched this film at least 15 times.
It is Riefenstahl's techniques that made this propaganda film the film it is as it uses aerial photography and it's long focus lenses which in 1935 were unheard of. Not to mention its revolutionary approach of use of cinematography and music.
Riefenstahl was said that one of the most difficult tasks of hers was editing the film as she had over 61 hours of footage of the rally. She worked around the clock, working as fast as she could to fit the film in it's 114 minutes and to do this, she was sleeping in the editing room with endless feet of film footage.
It is quite extraordinary to watch as we see these soldiers of the Nazi party (mostly under 20) joking around, shaving together, playing games and honouring their "great" leader, Hitler. It's a very chilling experience.
Click here to watch the film
Even legendary German film-maker Fritz Lang left just after making The Testament of Dr Mabuse (which was being banned as it was said to be an anti-Nazi film). And today that very year, all political parties were deemed illegal, except of course for the evil Nazi party.
Two years after, Leni Riefenstahl directed Triumph of the Will under the order of Hitler himself and is about the 1934 Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg where over 700,000 Nazi supporters attended. Hitler also commissioned the film and was an unofficial executive producer.
Like The Birth of a Nation, this became one of the most controversial films of all time as it represented pure evil. Yet it has gone down in history as one of the best-known examples of propaganda in film history.
Asides from it's subject, it is a revelation in film-making and has influenced many film-makers over the years, including Charlie Chaplin, who was the first to use it's imagery in his parody of Nazism The Great Dictator. Mick Jagger apparently told Riefenstahl that he has watched this film at least 15 times.
It is Riefenstahl's techniques that made this propaganda film the film it is as it uses aerial photography and it's long focus lenses which in 1935 were unheard of. Not to mention its revolutionary approach of use of cinematography and music.
Riefenstahl was said that one of the most difficult tasks of hers was editing the film as she had over 61 hours of footage of the rally. She worked around the clock, working as fast as she could to fit the film in it's 114 minutes and to do this, she was sleeping in the editing room with endless feet of film footage.
It is quite extraordinary to watch as we see these soldiers of the Nazi party (mostly under 20) joking around, shaving together, playing games and honouring their "great" leader, Hitler. It's a very chilling experience.
Click here to watch the film
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