HITLER: THE LAST TEN DAYS

 

I recently received another batch of discount movies from Edward R. Hamilton, and among them was a DVD of the 1973 British-Italian co-production HITLER: THE LAST TEN DAYS, with Alec Guinness in the title role. 

Any film dealing with Hitler now has to be compared with DOWNFALL, starring Bruno Ganz. DOWNFALL in my opinion is by far the best cinematic representation of the Nazi regime, and while HITLER: THE LAST TEN DAYS covers essentially the exact same material, it falls short of being either historically dramatic or notable. 

Most of the film is set (as expected) in Hitler's bunker during the waning days of the Third Reich in April 1945. This version of those events is a dreary affair, as most of the scenes have the supporting cast listening to Hitler's bizarre observations and rants. Unlike DOWNFALL, the supporting characters are barely sketched out--it's as if they are around mainly to give Hitler an audience. 

HITLER: THE LAST TEN DAYS feels more like a stage play instead of a movie, with a main element being the heavy atmosphere of the cramped and stuffy bunker facility. I realize that this is an important part of any story dealing with the last days of Hitler, but DOWNFALL was able to overcome this by showing what life was like outside in war-torn Berlin. THE LAST TEN DAYS sprinkles in a few scenes of black & white newsreel footage from time to time, but these scenes seem inserted almost at random. 

Alec Guinness is one of my favorite actors, and the very idea of him playing Adolf Hitler has to pique the interest of any film geek. I have to admit that while watching THE LAST TEN DAYS I didn't feel if I was seeing Hitler--I felt that I was seeing Alec Guinness trying to be Hitler. Guinness puts a lot of emphasis on the Fuhrer's gestures and mannerisms, but I felt he was at his best when he kept perfectly still and reduced his expression to a cold glare. Guinness' Hitler also seems far too healthy and mentally alert to be the wreck of a man trapped in a bunker while his supposedly beloved Germany goes up in flames above him. 

As with just about any British historical film made in the 1960s-70s, this has an esteemed supporting cast, with Simon Ward, Julian Glover, and Joss Ackland. Due to this being a part-Italian production, Adolfo Celi and Gabriele Ferzetti are in the cast as well. Celi in particular feels out of place here--he was one of the most well-known Italian actors, and he's dubbed by Robert Rietty, who also did Celi's voice as Largo in THUNDERBALL. Seeing Celi in this film makes one wonder if he was supposed to be a representative of Mussolini, or if SPECTRE had somehow infiltrated the German High Command. Doris Kunstsmann is a glamorous Eva Braun, and Angela Pleasence, daughter of Donald, has a cameo. 

The story perks up a bit when famed pilot Hanna Reitsch (Diane Cilento) arrives with General von Greim (Eric Porter). This leads to a strange sub-plot in which Reitsch is jealous of Eva Braun. This diversion isn't enough to give the film momentum, as the viewer merely waits for Hitler to come to his well-known end. 

Despite being mostly filmed in England, HITLER: THE LAST TEN DAYS was directed (and co-written) by Italian Ennio De Concini, a man who has his name on the writing credits of a number of notable European productions. It's not a bad attempt to portray the last days of the Third Reich, but unfortunately a number of scenes border on being unintentionally funny, especially the ones showing the relationship between Hitler and Eva Braun. (This is a problem that any movie and TV show portraying Hitler has to deal with--it's something Mel Brooks understood quite well.) Despite his mammoth talents, I don't think Alec Guinness was particularly suited for the role of Adolf Hitler.