Der Untergang (2004)

Director:

Oliver Hirschbiegel

Writers:

Joachim Fest (book)
Traudl Junge (book) ...

Release Date:

16 September 2004 (Germany)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | History | War

Tagline:

April 1945, a nation awaits its...

Plot:

Traudl Junge, the final secretary for Adolf Hitler, tells of the Nazi dictator's final days in his Berlin bunker at the end of WWII.

Plot Keywords:

Hitler | Bunker | Adolf Hitler | 1945 | Russian

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 15 wins & 13 nominations

Cast

Bruno Ganz	...	Adolf Hitler
Alexandra Maria Lara	...	Traudl Junge
Corinna Harfouch	...	Magda Goebbels
Ulrich Matthes	...	Joseph Goebbels
Juliane Köhler	...	Eva Braun
Heino Ferch	...	Albert Speer
Christian Berkel	...	Prof. Dr. Ernst-Günter Schenck
Matthias Habich	...	Prof. Dr. Werner Haase
Thomas Kretschmann	...	SS-Gruppenführer Hermann Fegelein
Michael Mendl	...	General der Artillerie Helmuth Weidling
André Hennicke	...	SS-Brigadeführer Wilhelm Mohnke
Ulrich Noethen	...	Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler
Birgit Minichmayr	...	Gerda Christian
Rolf Kanies	...	General der Infanterie Hans Krebs
Justus von Dohnanyi	...	General der Infanterie Wilhelm Burgdorf

Also Known As:

Downfall (UK) (USA)
Der Untergang - Hitler und das Ende des 3. Reichs (Germany) (working title)
La caduta - Gli ultimi giorni di Hitler (Italy)
The Downfall (literal English title)
The Downfall: Hitler and the End of the Third Reich (USA)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, disturbing images and some nudity.

Runtime:

156 min | 178 min (extended version)

Country:

Germany | Italy | Austria

Language:

German | Russian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Taiwan:R-12 | Malaysia:18SG | Philippines:R-13 | Australia:MA | Italy:T | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | France:U (with warning) | Argentina:16 | Brazil:16 | Finland:K-15 | Germany:12 (bw) | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:15A | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R13 | Norway:15 | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Spain:18 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Bavaria Filmstudios, Geiselgasteig, Grünwald, Bavaria, Germany

Company:

Constantin Film Produktion

Trivia:

Also helping Bruno Ganz in preparing for the role was the unique, only known recording of Adolf Hitler when he held a private conversation with Field Marshal Gustaf Mannerheim of Finland (WWII ally of Germany against Soviet). Hitler unexpectedly showed up to congratulate Mannerheim on his 75th birthday on June 4, 1942. Finnish intelligence agents secretly made the recording in a train wagon (Hitler did not allow recordings nor photographs to be taken in private). Some 11 minutes of the recording feature relaxed, normal-tone talk in which Hitler generally describe his views about the war. One of two copies of the tape was discovered in 1992 and has since been studied by scientists and historians.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In the document Gen. Krebs hands over to Gen. Zhukov when they first meet for peace negotiations, the term "Nachfolge Regierung" appears. But in German, writing two nouns as isolated words with no visible connection is wrong (the correct writing would be either "Nachfolgeregierung" or "Nachfolge-Regierung"). While this is in itself a factual mistake, it is also an anachronism, since this mistake was not common before the English language started to influence German. Back in 1945, this was certainly not the case.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Traudl Junge: I've got the feeling that I should be angry with this child, this young and oblivious girl. Or that I'm not allowed to forgive her for not seeing the nature of that monster. That she didn't realise what she was doing. And mostly because I've gone so obliviously...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in GG 19 - Eine Reise durch Deutschland in 19 Artikeln (2007)

Soundtrack:

Die Blauen Dragoner Sie Reiten

Amazing realism

Der Untergang makes you live the horrors and craziness of war. Bruno Ganz's interpretation of Adolf Hitler is worthy of an Oscar. He is completely believable. Also the rest of the cast performs admirably. You feel transported to Berlin as it was bombarded by the Russians. You get a very clear insight (or an impression?) in how the military decisions were taken during those final days of the war. The movie balances well between large-scale effects of bombs exploding in ruined streets and depictions of different persons going though the experience – from Hitler and his staff in the well-protected bunkers to the principal military commanders torn between reason and loyalty and German civilians trapped in an inferno. The movie is neither pro-Nazi nor does it depict all Nazis as mindless monsters. It gives an impression of utter realism. Go see it in a good cinema – your seat will tremble as the bombs explode. A nine out of ten.