I just saw the movie Der Untergang (the downfall) about Hitler's last days in the bunker, as told by his 24 yr old secretary. Bruno Ganz plays Hitler, and in preparing for the role he listened to a recording made of Hitler in normal conversation, to capture his vocal characteristics. Absolutely incredible film: the guy who played Joseph Goebbels was really frightening, but his wife Magda was even more scarey. It was a hard film to watch - they are under seige throughout the film, explosions constantly going off. The absurdity of living in a bunker comes through: the cigarette breaks outside, Eva Braun's party (she dances on a table), the intrigue among his generals, Hitler's psychotic behavior, the many dinners (Hitler dines on cheese ravioli and compliments the chef, just before shooting himself), the poisoning of the Goebbels children - but my favorite scene was when Hilter and Eva were carried out to be burned in a ditch - the generals were outside, with Goebbels, and they lit 200 gallons of fuel (you can imagine the explosion) and as their bodies burn they all give the nazi salute - flames illuminating the faces of these fanatics. It's 2 1/2 hours of emotional stress, but worth it. By far this years best foreign film.
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