Speer und er

Ein klassischer TV-Mini, der sich mit dem Erbe des Dritten Reiches auseinandersetzt. Die ganze Sache steht und fällt mit der sehr interessanten Besetzung: Sebastian Koch (Albert Speer) und Tobias Moretti (Adolf Hitler). In Deutschland hat man längst gelernt, die Vergangenheit präsent zu machen und scheut sich nicht vor einer gesamtgesellschaftlichen Debatte. (05.04.2021)

On first impression, I gave this documentary three stars, but upon careful consideration, I had to lower it by one. The problem is not so much the average acting performances of most of the cast, the uninteresting TV-style direction, or that some of the actors clearly do not resemble their historical counterparts. The issue is the manipulative tone, where the form humanizes Speer too much and emotionally takes his side. The extensive testimonies of his children, the cheap sentimental stories, and the readings of letters, simply do not belong in a professional and unbiased documentary. The tone is manipulative in that, even though indirectly, it still agrees with Speer in his claims that he didn't know, didn't understand, didn't have a clue, and that his guilt is only that he theoretically could have known and understood. The truth is that from his position and the perspective of historical facts, he simply did know, understand, and above all, he was responsible for many things. This television pseudo-documentary perfectly corresponds to the efforts of a part of the German public to throw the responsibility for the horrors of the Nazi regime on a few individuals.... Overall impression: 40%. (08.01.2008)