Der Untergang (2004)

User Rating:

8.4/10   

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 (Lara), the final secretary for Adolf Hitler (Ganz), tells of the Nazi dictator's final days in his Berlin bunker at the end of WWII.

Plot Keywords:

Hitler | Bunker | Adolf Hitler | Secretary | 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)
La caída (Argentina) (festival title) (Colombia) (Venezuela) [es]
La chute (Belgium: French title) (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Undergången - Hitler och tredje rikets fall (Finland: Swedish title) (Sweden) [sv]
Çöküs (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
A Queda! As Últimas Horas de Hitler (Brazil) [pt]
Allakäik (Estonia) [et]
El hundimiento (Spain) [es]
Hitler: Konacan pad (Croatia) [hr]
Pád Tretí ríse (Czech Republic) [cs]
Pád Tretej ríse (Slovakia) [sk]
Perikato (Finland) [fi]
Upadek (Poland) [pl]

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:

Many of Hitler's lines are historically accurate, based on account of Albert Speer and Traudl Junge, most of them however are from earlier date

Goofs:

Factual errors: SS-Doctor Ernst-Günther Schenck speaks to a German officer near a tank before his way to an abandoned hospital. That tank is supposed to be a T-VI (Tiger-I) according to the shape of its turret. But the width of tracks corresponds to the soviet tank T-34, not T-VI (550 mm for T-34 and 725 mm for T-VI). It is clearly visible that a tank cannon (especially its blast reducer) is a fake and almost all small details of the turret are inaccurate. The front turret armor plate is a painted wooden board. The movie maker most likely used the T-34 as a basis for that camouflage.

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 Erkan & Stefan in Der Tod kommt krass (2005)

Soundtrack:

Blutrote Rosen

The Most Impressive, Depressive and Realistic Dramatic Movie about the World War II

"Der Untergang" is certainly the most impressive, depressive and realistic dramatic movie about the World War II ever made. I have never seen a film picturing the insanity of Hitler in his very last days in a bunker in Berlin with his high command, and how the German people were hypnotized by him like in this film. Last year, I saw the deceptive, boring, pretentious and overrated "Molokh", showing a caricature of Hitler and Eva Braun in Bavaria. But "Der Untergang" is awesome and comparable to "Apocalypse Now!", my favorite movie of war.

Two years ago, I saw the powerful "Das Experiment" and I was impressed with the work of Oliver Hirschbiegel. With "Der Untergang", this director is certainly included in my list of favorite directors. It is difficult to highlight one actor or actress in this constellation of stars, but I was impressed with the performance of Bruno Ganz and his "human" Hitler, totally different from the stereotypes usual in other movies. The cinematography and the battles are stunning, and the scenario of Berlin completely destroyed recalled the neo-realistic movie of Roberto Rossellini "Germania Anno Zero".

For those who know Germany and German people, it is amazing to see how this wonderful country survived to the chaos, destruction and lack of command, arrived from the ashes like Phoenix and sixty years later is again one of the greatest nations. For those who might have believed in Hitler and his Nazi Party, it is impressive to see how people is forgotten and treated without compassion by their leader in his last hours. And for those who love war, I really recommend to watch this magnificent anti-war movie, and see the behavior of the leaders and population when a war is lost. My vote is ten.

Title (Brazil): "A Queda! As Últimas Horas de Hitler" ("The Fall! The Last Hours of Hitler")