Review of Triumph of the Will (1935) by Rob S — 16 Aug 2007

Leni Riefenstahl is still among the most controversial and contentious filmakers of all time. Mainly because her two masterworks came while she was offical film makers to the Nazi's. And while its hard to like her because of this - and no doubt that in a political sense this glorification of the Nazi's cemented thier image of the time - there is absolutely no doubting her ability as a filmaker.

In fact if you can put aside the politics, Triumph of the Will is an amazingly lavish and carnival like ode to hope. While all the people scream, smile, wave or chant unaware of the horrors that would follow over the next ten years, you can't help but see how they fell under Hitler's spell in the first place. However you can't really watch the film out of context, because of what it is, so naturally you can't help being slightly upset that it was something so abhorrent that won over the German nation so effectively.

The key to the film is Riefenstahl's vision. From the opening, amongst the clouds moments (which incredibly, still look amazing) to the camera angles, cross cutting and music, she manages to make something so huge, so lavish, and if you didn't know what was going to happen next so exciting.

The film does have its flaws - its too long really. The speaches do drag on a little bit in places, and as a joyous spectacle it doesn't need to be two hours long. Of course the other main issue is the context. It really is a shame that its so difficult to watch out of context - and indeed that Riefenstahl's talent was so wasted - because it would be a beautiful film if what happened next wasn't so horrible. She didn't know that at the time of course, but its difficult to view it otherwise. If you think you can its reccomended, because its an outragously good piece of cinema - its just a shame that its wasted on such subject matter.