by Tammy Petry
For my non-American readers, I realize a lot of this stuff may be classified as "illegal" in certain countries. After a bit of research, I discovered that a simple disclaimer might allow legal viewing of this content for citizens of most countries.
Triumph of the Will (German: Triumph des Willens) is a 1935 film made by Leni Riefenstahl. It chronicles the 1934 Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg, which was attended by more than 700,000 Nazi supporters. The film contains excerpts from speeches given by Nazi leaders.
The film's overriding theme is the return of Germany as a great power, with Hitler as the leader who will bring glory to the nation.
Because the film was made after the 1934 Night of the Long Knives, many prominent SA members are absent, having been murdered in that purge.
The film opens with shots of the clouds above the city, and then moves through the clouds to float above the assembling masses below, with the intention of portraying beauty and majesty of the scene. The cruciform shadow of Hitler's plane is visible as it passes over the tiny figures marching below, accompanied by an orchestral arrangement of the Horst-Wessel-Lied.
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| L Blogging From A to Z April Challenge http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com 2014 |
Disclaimer: The information in this blog is for historical/educational purposes only.
"Shortly after he came to power Hitler called me to see him and explained that he wanted a film about a Party Congress, and wanted me to make it. My first reaction was to say that I did not know anything about the way such a thing worked or the organization of the Party, so that I would obviously photograph all the wrong things and please nobody - even supposing that I could make a documentary, which I had never yet done. Hitler said that this was exactly why he wanted me to do it: because anyone who knew all about the relative importance of the various people and groups and so on might make a film that would be pedantically accurate, but this was not what he wanted. He wanted a film showing the Congress through a non-expert eye, selecting just what was most artistically satisfying - in terms of spectacle, I suppose you might say. He wanted a film which would move, appeal to, impress an audience which was not necessarily interested in politics."
— Leni Riefenstahl
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| Leni Riefenstahl |
The film's overriding theme is the return of Germany as a great power, with Hitler as the leader who will bring glory to the nation.
Because the film was made after the 1934 Night of the Long Knives, many prominent SA members are absent, having been murdered in that purge.
Triumph of the Will was released in 1935 and became a prominent example of propaganda in film history.
Riefenstahl's techniques—such as moving cameras, aerial photography, the use of long focus lenses to create a distorted perspective, and the revolutionary approach to the use of music and cinematography—have earned Triumph of the Will recognition as one of the greatest films in history.
Riefenstahl won several awards, not only in Germany but also in the United States, France, Sweden, and other countries. The film was popular in the Third Reich, and has continued to influence movies, documentaries, and commercials to this day. However, it is banned from showing in Germany owing to its support for Nazism and its numerous portrayals of the swastika.
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| Triumph of the Will "Triumph des Willens" 1935 German Film Poster |
The film begins with a prologue, the only commentary in the film. It consists of the following text, shown sequentially, against a grey background:
[On 5 September 1934]
[20 years after the outbreak of the World War]
[16 years after the beginning of German suffering]
[19 months after the beginning of the German rebirth]
[Adolf Hitler flew again to Nuremberg to review the columns of his faithful followers]
The film opens with shots of the clouds above the city, and then moves through the clouds to float above the assembling masses below, with the intention of portraying beauty and majesty of the scene. The cruciform shadow of Hitler's plane is visible as it passes over the tiny figures marching below, accompanied by an orchestral arrangement of the Horst-Wessel-Lied.
Upon arriving at the Nuremberg airport, Hitler and other Nazi leaders emerge from his plane to thunderous applause and a cheering crowd. He is then driven into Nuremberg, through equally enthusiastic people, to his hotel where a night rally is later held.
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| 1934 Night Rally Albert Speers' "Cathedral of Light" |
Riefenstahl had the difficult task of condensing an estimated 61 hours of film into two hours. She labored to complete the film as fast as she could, going so far as to sleep in the editing room filled with hundreds of thousands of feet of film footage.
"The Party is Hitler - and Hitler is Germany just as Germany is Hitler!
— Rudolf Hess
In the closing speech of Triumph of the Will, Hitler enters the room from the back, appearing to emerge from the people. After a one sentence introduction, he tells his faithful Nazis how the German nation has subordinated itself to the Nazi Party because its leaders are mostly of Germans. He promises that the new state that the Nazis have created will endure for thousands of years. Hitler says that the youth will carry on after the old have weakened.
They close with a chant, "Hitler is the Party, Hitler." The camera focuses on the large Swastika above Hitler and the film ends with the images of this Swastika imposed on Nazis marching in a few columns.
They close with a chant, "Hitler is the Party, Hitler." The camera focuses on the large Swastika above Hitler and the film ends with the images of this Swastika imposed on Nazis marching in a few columns.
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