Downfall

Audience Reviews

View All (1000+) audience reviews

Shay k Incredible and thought-provoking film. This movie shows Hitler's final days living in the bunker under Berlin, mostly from the perspective of his young secretary. It is book-ended with real interviews from his secretary. The acting was outstanding and from what I can tell from my googling, it appears to be quite accurate in its depiction of the events leading up to Germany's surrender. There aren't a ton of gruesome depictions of battle scenes, but you definitely feel the horror. There are lots of shots of hospitals and bunkers full of injured people and the film highlights the role of Hitler youth, so you see small children running into battle. More than a war movie this felt like a horror film about a bunch of people trapped in a bunker together slowly going crazy. The cruelty displayed by some of the officers and Hitler was truly disturbing- this movie humanized the man but certainly doesn't shy away from showing what a hypocrite and a sociopath he was. Part of the hard part of this movie is reminding yourself that other than the children, none of these people are innocent. Even our main character Traudl. She seems to have repented a bit after the war and claims she did not know the extent of what was happening but this woman was still a Hitler fangirl which is hard to remember when watching the film. Even though she made her bed, you find yourself empathizing with her fear of what will happen to her (something Hitler would call you weak for) My one piece of advice would be to google some of the members of Hitler's inner circle before watching. You get a lot more from the movie if you recognize some of the generals in the bunker and connect them to acts in the war. Great film I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/10/24 Full Review Wyatt E Truly one of the greatest war movies of all time. What surprised me the most was that it was a German made film, but it is better to learn from history then possibly repeat it. This movie is a true masterpiece of chaos and anarchy. Bruno Ganz playing Hitler was a great choice, honestly half the time he really looks like Hitler; He also plays him very well, with a booming voice when ranting and a deep quite voice when talking normaly, much like the real Hitler. What surprised me even more than the movie being German made, was the aspect of them humanizing Hitler making him seem more like a real person, instead of a pure evil ranting maniac. Because it's important to remember that anyone with a similar mind set and life could do the same, and that evil can sprout from anyone anywhere. Another part of the film I liked was when we see the fighting and soldiers in the streets, it doesn't shy away from the grim and gruseme realism of war, we see people dying in realistic ways, unlike other big war films that have epic stunts and dramatic deaths. In Downfall we see the true extent of war, and just how brutal it can be. Lasty one thing I really liked was how they portray Hitler and Eva's deaths. Most war movie that include their deaths will show them committing suicide, but in this movie we only hear it; Which I think is pretty clever because there are people out their who truly belive that Hitler escaped Berlin, or that Bormann had Hitler killed. This allows thw audience to draw their own conclusions if they want to and also leaves much to the imagination. Overall this was a great movie and I highly recommend it Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/10/24 Full Review Jerod S Hitler and the world around him was nuts. His last 10 days in hiding were a whirlwind of psychosis and drinking the koolaid. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 07/04/24 Full Review Tanner S Absolutely fantastic film. Does it humanize Hitler? Yes. But guess what? He was human. And this shows him more as he truly was, which makes it all the more terrifying. 10/10 recommend. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/18/24 Full Review Diana S This movie is now 20 years old and I only just saw it for the first time. I imagine my criticism of it is the same as many of the critics in 2004. I just don't understand this impulse to try to generate empathy for monsters. I imagine it goes along with the stubborn insistence on overcomplicating the matter of why people do horrifying things. I don't find the question hard to answer and it seems like some people just don't want to accept the simple truth that people in groups do awful things because they want to and/or because they want approval and because they think they will get away with it because everyone else is doing it too. Yes, the Nazis had families and connections and whatever. Who cares. They lived like cowards and they died like cowards. The end. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 06/12/24 Full Review Mehmet A one of the best movies on ww2 Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/12/24 Full Review Read all reviews

Downfall

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Most Popular at Home Now