I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

the audience applauded

Highly Overrated But Still Good

The film was still a fun one that will make you laugh and have you leaving the theater feeling like you just stole something valuable and got away with it.

The DVD I've watched is strangely called "After Mein Kampf", produced by 22nd Century, and is one of a series called World in Conflict: a complete documentary history of World War 2. This DVD is in two sections; the longer one covering Hitler's rise to power, at dizzying speed, from infancy up to 1940, stopping short of his air attack on Britain, and well before his declaration of war on America. The second section is much more brief, introduced by William L. Shirer, apparently in 1945, which outlines the threat that might be presented by fanatical members of the Hitler Jugend. Shirer suggests that the Nazi ideology swallowed by these young men could lead to another future war.The longer section seems to have been thrown together in a matter of days, and consists of a break-neck range of documentary footage, confusingly mingled with enactments by actors, male and female, speaking English. The haste in which it was made is indicated by the astounding mis-spelling of "Britian" in the preliminary title. Hitler is portrayed in the enacted scenes by a look-alike actor, and the effect is peculiar and unsatisfactory. According to another reviewer the Reichstag incendiary Lubbe was portrayed at his re-enacted trial by Peter Ustinov. In 1940 Ustinov would have been aged 19, and he began acting in 1938. Wikipedia says he appeared in propaganda films, not debuting until 1942. Perhaps the writer was ignorant of this obscure earlier role. Herbert Lom, aged 23 in 1940, may also be spotted by the eagle-eyed. The enacted scenes are exceedingly clumsily shot.The film was made in England, and appears to be intended partly to stiffen the British resistance to Hitler, and partly to convince the Americans of Hitler's evil. One extended enactment scene is excruciating. It involves a uniformed member of the Hitler Youth who has denounced his father to the Nazis, shown defending his actions in conversation with his mother. Since they are both speaking upper-class English, the impression is decidedly grotesque. It is reminiscent of a denunciation episode in George Orwell's novel, 1984, and one wonders if he had a hand in scripting this film. It's not impossible.The short film introduced by Shirer is entirely devoted to documentary footage of the Hitler Youth movement. It features German generals, such as Guderian. Its inclusion in this particular DVD is curiously anomalous. Shirer's "Berlin Diary" was published in 1941. He changed his text, and covered up his favourable early impressions of Hitler. Hitler had his admirers in both Britain and the US during the 1930s, such as Henry Ford, Charles Lindbergh, Joseph Kennedy, Prescott Bush, and others. William Randolph Hearst believed that Germany would win the war. The documentary film seems to have been made long before 1945.I had to watch this thing twice before I even began to get a proper grasp of the chronology involved. Still, it's eye-opening, for more than one reason.

*Spoiler/plot- 1940, Germany is an aggressor state that loves uniforms, parades and martial music and must be watched at all times.*Special Stars- Historic figures of the topic from newsreel footage. With several un-credited voice actors providing the voice over plot line.*Theme- Germany is an aggressor state and must be watched at all times.*Trivia/location/goofs- British, Documentary. Look for a young Peter Ustinoff as the Reichstag communist bomber.*Emotion- An rather crazy self-serving propagandist film from the British government drawing many negative conclusions about it's wartime opponent, many somewhat hysterical in scope and nature to scare the public into providing a better war effort. Fun too watch and see the public opinion of the time.

British Propaganda film made in 1940 telling the story of Hitler's rise to power. Not far from the truth its mixes real footage with re-enactments with a decidedly anti- Nazi stance to create a very serious, but now very silly film. Its an odd mix of "why we fight" propaganda mixed with information about the enemy with just a touch of dry, and not so dry, wit aimed at making fun of the enemy so he was less terrifying. The mixture probably did exactly what it was suppose to but now over sixty years after the fact the whole effect is more than just a bit cartoonish. Running some 55 minutes it was quite amusing for about half its running time, by which time it was "enough of this already, I get the point". If you're interested in the period and its propaganda this is must see viewing, however if you want a non partisan look at events prior to the start of the war look elsewhere.

One might wonder why that would have been necessary? Why would such an obvious evil need to be enlarged upon? Its important to remember that earlier on Hitler had much sympathy and support in the U.S. Ranging from a great many organizations of German immigrants, the "Bunds", to elected government officials like Sen. Joseph Kennedy, it took a long time for the U.S. to see Hitler for what he truly was. And that took a certain amount of what I'll call "shock therapy" by the U.S. press and movie industry. This, although it was produced in Britain, is a good example of that therapy. Its well done and hits, for that day and time, a needed mark. A very young Herbert Lom, who was born in Prague, makes a striking appearance as a Hitler Youth. This, one of his earliest roles, must have been a bitter sweet one for him. Well done and well put together, this remains worth watching. Lest we forget. Which is why history tends to repeat itself. We forget.