Napola - Elite für den Führer

[BenVK]

Just finished watching this excellent movie. I highly recommend it.
Before the Fall (2004) - IMDb

You can watch it online.
Napola - Elite für den Führer (part 1 - Eng sub) - YouTube
Napola - Elite für den Führer (part 2 - Eng sub) - YouTube

Enjoy!

[Woolgar]

Thanks Ben, I am on it already

Nick

[harryamb2]

cheers ben.

[Badto666]

Yes I bought it when it came out and I agree that it´s a very good movie

[CARL]

I agree Ben, Napola is indeed an excellent film. Filmed in Mähren (Moravia), if I remember correctly.

Regards,

Carl

[Friedrich-Berthold]

I like Moravia, and especially the food there, but also the women.

[Woolgar]

Bought !

Nick

[CARL]

I like Moravia, and especially the food there, but also the women.

Wholeheartedly agree with you FB, on both counts. There are some that say the diet benefits the other pleasing aspect of the place...in certain areas

Grüsse,

Carl

p.s. Nick, a wise decision my friend...you will not be disappointed.

[Kevin Grootaers]

Very good movie.

[HPL2008]

I agree Ben, Napola is indeed an excellent film. Filmed in Mähren (Moravia), if I remember correctly.

That's right; the exteriors for the Napola seen in the film were shot at the Bouzov castle. (Hrad Bouzov / Burg Busau; see, for example: Bouzov Castle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia or Bouzov )

Agreed; a fine film which I fully recommend. I saw it at the cinema back when it came out, later bought the DVD and by now have watched it many times over.

I think it does an extremely good job of illustrating the evil seductiveness of the Nazi ideology, especially for young people.

I also admire the film's realistic, multi-faceted characterizations, brought to life by an excellent, strong cast. Hollywood fare all too often relies on clichéd, cardboard cutout characters, whereas here even the "bad guys" are believable human beings with a fleshed-out personality.

Nowhere is this more evident as in Gauleiter Stein portrayed by veteran character actor Justus von Dohnányi (who was also great as General Burgdorf in "Downfall" or Berus in "The Experiment"... but I digress.) When he grew up, he never had the chance to get the kind of training and career prospects that the Napola education now offers and he thinks that his son should be grateful for this, which he tells him in no uncertain terms. He actually believes that he does his intellectual, sensitive - or, as he would see it, "weak" - son a favor by forcing him into the Napola; totally unable to see that he causes nothing but suffering and doom. We despise him for what he stands for and for what he does to his son, but at the same time, while we could not possibly condone his views and actions, we can actually understand his motivations... to a certain degree.

Those are always the greatest movie villains: The ones who fully believe that they are actually doing the right thing. It's also exactly how some of the worst figures in real life were ticking.

(Although I must say that my "favorite" character is Michael Schenk's nasty, bullying PE teacher; especially his wholly unexpected display of a sense of fairness in that "punch me in the stomach" scene, when he doesn't come down on Friedrich like a ton of bricks like we would expect him to.)