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Before the Fall

Play trailer Poster for Before the Fall 2004 1h 51m Drama History Play Trailer Watchlist
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67% Tomatometer 39 Reviews 84% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
An idealistic boxer (Max Riemelt) bonds with an aspiring writer (Tom Schilling) while training at a Nazi academy.
Before the Fall

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Despite a degree of predictability and cliches, the high production values and sincere performances by the leads elevate this coming-of-age story set in Nazi Germany.

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Critics Reviews

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Terry Lawson Detroit Free Press 04/07/2006
2/4
Nearly every point made in Before the Fall, be it about militarism or the secret sexual codes of fascism, is made too obviously, or has been made before, in films from Cabaret to Europa, Europa. Go to Full Review
Amy Biancolli Houston Chronicle 03/24/2006
2.5/4
It asks us to sympathize with teenage boys being groomed for National Socialist glory, and for that reason alone, it absorbs. Go to Full Review
Ruthe Stein San Francisco Chronicle 03/10/2006
3/4
... hooks you by focusing on Friedrich's very human story. Go to Full Review
Paul Chambers CNNRadio 01/22/2010
c+
Quite a nice study of the Germany military schools where young men were most sheltered from the atrocities of World War II. The central character knows what's happening but instead focuses on a better future than his father had. But, still decisions mus Go to Full Review
Chelsea Bain Boston Herald 10/21/2006
3.5/4
Eric D. Snider EricDSnider.com 05/30/2006
B+
Gansel is to be commended for finding a way to tell a beautiful story simultaneous with indicting his countrymen for their ugliness. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Lisa V Mar 27 I watched many war movies but always come back to this one. It is one of the most gut wrenching stories that show a beautiful friendship and happiness in this friendship. They change each other so much that they cannot go back to their old life's which leads to the tragic but perfect ending. The movie shows how a normal teenager could be drawn to the NAPOLAs which is important for us today to understand.Max Riemelt and Tom Schillings acting performance is really natural, detailed and emotionally raw. For me, the movie is perfect. See more Thomas S 09/28/2024 Quite expected scenario, but the merit of this movie is that it makes us dive in the way totalitarian regimes shape their youth, aka the future. The scene where Fritz arrives at Napola, puts on his uniform and can't help smiling when singing... Who at that age could resist voices telling you all day that you are the elite, the future, the best of the nation. Terrifying... See more Ola G 09/27/2023 In 1942, the boxing skills of Friedrich Weimer earn him a place at a National Political Academy (NaPolA), a boarding school that serves as an entry into the Nazi elite. His father, an anti-Nazi factory worker, refuses to allow Friedrich to enroll. Friedrich, who sees the school as his ticket to a better life, forges his father's signature on the permission slip and leaves. He makes his way to the town of Allenstein, where the institute is located. He is introduced to his roommates Christoph, Hefe, Tjaden and Siggi. That evening, they gain another new roommate, Albrecht Stein, with whom Friedrich becomes fast friends... "Napola – Elite für den Führer" is a well made WWII movie about the National Political Institutes of Education or "NaPolA" school developed by the Nazi Germany government. Strong perfomances and strong storyline. See more Tony S 08/06/2021 A great look into inner workings of Reich's boarding school from the perspective of two friends from two different backgrounds, unfortunately overt dramatization of almost every scene with overusage of slow motion takes away from the film's poignancy. What is portrayed should speak for itself. However it doesn't mean it fails in cinematography, it's quite beautifully shot and sets and costumes look wonderfully authentic. See more 10/12/2018 Too obvious, but still fascinating. See more 05/27/2018 The best movie in the world ;) See more Read all reviews
Before the Fall

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Movie Info

Synopsis An idealistic boxer (Max Riemelt) bonds with an aspiring writer (Tom Schilling) while training at a Nazi academy.
Director
Dennis Gansel
Screenwriter
Dennis Gansel, Maggie Peren
Production Co
Universal/Universal Int
Genre
Drama, History
Original Language
German
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 29, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$144.1K
Runtime
1h 51m