Rating: R
Genre:
Drama
Theatrical Release: 02/18/2005(USA
Release Date: 08/02/2005
SubTitles: English
Dubbed: Ger
Sound: DD5.1
Run Time: 155 Minutes
Flags: Graphic Violence, Nudity, Adult Situations, Not For Children
Distributor/Studio: Columbia TriStar
The last ten days of
Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime are seen through the eyes of a young woman in his employ in this
historical drama from Germany.
Traudl Junge (
Alexandra Maria Lara) was 22 years old when, in the fall of 1942, she was hired to be personal secretary to
Adolf Hitler (
Bruno Ganz). In April of 1945,
Junge was still working for
Hitler as forces were bearing down on Germany and the leader retreated to a secret bunker in Berlin for what would prove to be the last ten days of his life, as well as that of the Third Reich. As
Hitler's mistress
Eva Braun (
Juliane Köhler) attempts to throw a cheerful birthday party for her man,
Hitler's closest associates, including
Heinrich Himmler (
Ulrich Noethen),
Joseph Goebbels (
Ulrich Matthes), and
Albert Speer (
Heino Ferch), urge him to flee the city with only
Goebbels maintaining any illusions that the Third Reich has any hope of survival.
Hitler refuses to leave Berlin, and he spends his final days ranting and raving to
Junge, blaming all around him as he tries to understand where his leadership went wrong. Meanwhile,
Goebbels and his wife round up their six children and bring them to the bunker as Berlin begins to topple, determined to take their lives rather than face the Allies after Germany's certain defeat.
Der Untergang (aka
The Downfall) was based in part on the memoirs of the real-life
Traudl Junge, whose experiences also formed the basis of the 2002 documentary
Im Toten Winkel: Hitlers Sekretarin (aka
Blind Spot: Hitler's Secretary).
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
