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wogan | U.S.A. | 10/07/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I looked at this film, about the trial of the conspirators who knew or were involved in the assassination attempt on at Hitler at his Wolfsschanze, as a teacher previewing to show to high school students and was impressed both as resource for higher level history classes and for someone who would be interested in the history of WWII, Germany and the Third Reich.
First it retains its' authenticity by leaving in the German soundtrack, even if you don't understand German you can hear the tone and invective in the prosecutor's voices. A narrator explains and interprets, but is not intrusive or overwhelming, there are even silences left, rather than like some films where every second has to be filled with talking, music and noise.
The film starts with the trial and then shows the joyous beginnings of the Reich, the marching and cheering crowds. There are news reel photos of the German leaders, and explanations of who each are.
Previous plots against Hitler are explored, which is highly interesting if you are delving into this subject. I appreciated the inclusions of the plot that was stopped by Chamberlain's visit to Munich and the fact that Rommel was coerced to take poison and then given a hero's funeral, since it would have been too traumatic of a revelation that he was aware of the plot and did nothing to stop it.
The films used are not always of the best quality, but then they cannot be, after the rigors of war.
This film was made in Berlin and includes the browbeating of the excesses of the German government during the war including the holocaust. Comments such as "the fighting courage of the German troops were misused for a criminal war". My AP Europe students have always found these kind of insights interesting.
This ends with the ranting of Goebbels, interspersed with burning German cities and the amazing fact that the 9 months between the assassination attempt and the end of the war more people were killed than in the preceding 5 years - a thought to hold if the attempt would have been successful what could have been saved - certainly the moonscape left that is shown of Berlin after the bombing raids. This is a film that can teach anyone who is really interested in history."

A Long Lost Film

Amos Lassen | Little Rock, Arkansas | 05/17/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

""The Top Secret Trial of the Third Reich"

A Long Lost Film

Amos Lassen

"The Top Secret Trial of the Third Reich" is the definitive documentary about the trial of the would-be assassins of Adolph Hitler. It had been lost for a very long time but now we have it on DVD from First Run Features and it contains authentic footage of propaganda from Nazi officer Joseph Goebbels.
In August 1944 a group of men who supposedly attempted to murder Adolph Hitler were put on trial. Joseph Goebbels ordered that cameras be hidden in the courtroom and shortly afterwards the film was released to the public as a method to deter others from doing the same thing. The film actually had an opposite effect and it generated sympathy for the accused who received the death penalty from a judge that appears to be totally deranged.
When a print of the film was found we received the right to see this amazing film. It reveals the secret history of Germany's resistance which we have never known much about. The National Committee for a Free Germany was a resistance group that planned several times to assassinate the Fuhrer and we are now able to have a look at what was going on behind the scenes.
The film gives us a chance to learn about history that was unknown to us and it is a document to the conscience of the other Germany. It will make you think and even gasp as it fills a void in that terrible chapter of the history of the world. A part of the film may seem a bit familiar because this is the topic of the Tom Cruise film, "Valkyrie".
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