Culture: June 2008 Archives

Leni Riefenstahl's next cinematic work was very likely made specifically for Adolf Hitler himself. The film was financed by Hitler through the German government; it is a film version of Adolf Hitler's favorite opera: Tiefland by Eugen d'Albert.

Based on the great Catalan writer Àngel Guimerà's 1896 play Terra baixa; Eugen d'Albert's Tiefland was his seventh and most famous Opera; though not immediately popular, the opera would garner international acclaim shortly after it was reworked by d'Albert in 1907.

Tiefland would be Leni Riefenstahl's last full length feature film. Once again she would direct, write, star, edit, and produce the film. I've seen the film and it is a very high quality work, it's a very artistic film and I feel that Leni Riefenstahl's vision is well supported, especially taking into consideration that the film was created during such a hectic time in her life, and of course a very hectic time for the entire world.

While Tiefland is not quite as much of a breakthrough as Leni Riefenstahl's great work done in Triumph of the Will and Olympia; Tiefland is full of extremely high quality, beautiful shots, and I believe it to be a fine film overall.

The one draining issue with Tiefland is that some of the actors were taken out of concentration camps and put to work on the film. Both Sinti and Roma gypsies were taken from concentration camps nearby wherever the shooting location was at the time.

It's said that the actors in the film were later put to death at some point after returning to the concentration camps. Whether that is true is unknown to me, but it seems that it was likely unknown to Leni Riefenstahl if it were true, as she denied anything like that ever happening. Regardless of the fact that many of the actors in the film were gypsies, or whether they were being forced into doing the work or not, or whether they were killed by the Nazi's at some point after the filming was finished; we have to realize that it was a terrible situation for them, as well as many other people during World War II, but it is a fact of Germany from that period in time, one that we have to accept and deal with.

It's unknown to me how Leni Riefenstahl treated her actors, but I can't see it as having been too bad, certainly not as bad as what was happening to them inside of their concentration camps; taking into account the fact that she was acting right there along with them. Who can say how they were treated while in her presence and working with her though.

Leni Riefenstahl's next film was another work for Hitler and the Nazi party, filmed and released the same year that Triumph of the Will was released, 1935. It is another documentary / propaganda piece filmed at the annual Nazi rally held in Nuremburg, entitled Tag der Freiheit! -- Unsere Wehrmacht! (Day of Freedom! -- Our Armed Forces!). It's a short film glorifying the German army. It is not quite up to the artistic merits of her previous works, especially Triumph of the Will, but it is a quality work for what it is; basically it's a showcase of the German army and how they operate.

The film was created due to the German army's lack of exposure in the brilliant Triumph of the Will. As such they were upset and wanted a film of their own, they went to Hitler with their concerns and Hitler accepted their idea and put it through to Riefenstahl.

Sadly the 1935 Nazi party rally in Nuremburg was the point in which the Nazi ideologies on the Jewish people would begin to further come to light and be implemented. Known as the Nuremberg Laws, they are one of the first of many black marks on the history of Leni Riefenstahl and her work, Adolf Hitler, the Nazi party, and much of the German population. The Nuremberg Laws were of course some of the first official discrimination laws against the Jewish people by the Nazi party.

Riefenstahl's next film was Olympia, in which she brilliantly documents the 1936 Summer Olympics. It is Leni Riefenstahl's last groundbreaking work in film (though not her last film). It is another masterwork, along with Triumph of the Will, Olympia is her greatest work in film; I can't quite say for sure which one I enjoy more or which was more of a breakthrough, both are cinematic masterpieces.

Olympia is a truly brilliant work. Known for its technical achievements, Leni uses advanced techniques in the process of creating the film, such as; tracking shots, everyone is aware of tracking shots today, but they certainly weren't as aware of them before Leni Riefenstahl; extreme close-ups, everyone knows what an extreme close-up is now, but very few knew what it was in 1936; smash-cut editing, which is now commonly used to give the viewer a quick snap, a wakeup call if you will, they weren't happening before Olympia; as well as cleverly angled and designed shots and lighting techniques; slow-motion techniques; and much more. The film showcases her absolute brilliance as a director in film and as an artist in general.

Before Olympia the vast majority of shots in cinema were done from stationary positions, little camera movement was involved and little variation on top of that. Certainly there were plenty of other great filmmakers both before and during the time of Leni Riefenstahl's classic directing works and I do not mean to discredit them at all. But the fact is that Leni Riefenstahl truly was a great artist and a cinematic visionary; Leni Riefenstahl was a pioneer and she should be seen and respected as such.

During the filming of Das Blaue Licht, Leni read Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf, and in 1932 she attended a Nazi (National Socialist German Workers' Party) rally, as a great number of Germans did; and as with a great number of her fellow Germans, she was enthralled by Adolf Hitler's rhetoric. Shortly after she had a meeting with Hitler, who told Leni that he enjoyed her work in Das Blaue Licht and elsewhere and would like her to film the upcoming fifth Nazi party rally, in Nuremberg.

Whether she wanted to create the film for herself, or had some sort of incentive or other motive behind its creation is unknown to me. Certainly she must have known that it would be used as a propaganda piece for the Nazi party and for her country; this isn't something that we should be upset over though, many great artists have created pieces for their countries that are seen as propaganda.

Through the opposition of much of the Nazi party and with the support of Hitler she was able to document the rally. The film that Riefenstahl created out of the 1933 Nazi rally in Nuremberg was Der Sieg des Glaubens (Victory of the Faith); which is a film that I haven't seen personally, but a film that I plan on seeing at some point in the future.

Shortly after its release the film was hidden away due to Hitler's orders to execute Ernst Röhm, the leader of the Sturmabteilung (the SA or the brownshirts); as well as many of his lieutenants and other people involved in the initial rise of Nazi power, and the rise of Hitler himself for that matter. The incident is known as the Night of the Long Knives; during which, over several days 90 people were murdered by the Schutzstaffel (the SS) and the Geheime Staatspolizei (the Gestapo). Leni Riefenstahl's feelings on the situation are unknown to me, I'm not aware of her speaking a word about it myself, but I can't imagine that she was too happy over her work being hidden away at the time.

Although the film had to be shelved, Adolf Hitler thought positively of her and her work on Der Sieg des Glaubens and asked Riefenstahl to create another film for the upcoming 1934 Nazi party rally in Nuremburg.

The film that Leni Riefenstahl created from the 1934 rally was another breakthrough, this time both a cinematic breakthrough and an artistic breakthrough. That film is Triumph des Willens (Triumph of the Will).  Riefenstahl shows her masterful control of the camera here; thanks to her tremendous artistic vision, Leni was able to create shots that had never been seen or even dreamed of with a camera. The sheer technical detail and effort that went into making the film is incredible; Leni used 30 cameras and had 120 technicians at her disposal; she had bridges and posts built in the center of Nuremburg; all of the camera placements, the movements, the lighting gantries, everything was specifically set up to Leni Riefenstahl's exact specifications.

Triumph des Willens is truly a great work, one that Leni Riefenstahl worked painstakingly to create to the absolute best of her ability, to fully meet her vision in every possible way. She recorded just over 66 and ½ hours of footage of the rally. Of those sixty-six and one-half hours of footage she edited the film into the brilliant 2 hour long documentary that we know today. The film received many awards, including the 1935 Venice International Film Festival Coppa dell'Istituto Nazionale LUCE award, the National Film Prize for 1934-1935, and the Medaille d'Or & Grand Prix de France in 1937.

The film was lauded at the time of its creation around the world and it has been highly praised by film enthusiasts, it is to this day praised by authorities of the cinematic and artistic realm, as it has from its very first showing. It truly is a masterpiece in documentary and visual filmmaking; no matter if it is considered propaganda or not, no matter if Leni Riefenstahl meant for it to be a propaganda piece or not. The facts remain: The artwork and the mastery of Leni Riefenstahl's work speaks for itself.

Leni Riefenstahl has been a very controversial figure for many years now. In this series of articles, I will go over my thoughts and feelings on her life and her work. This is part. 1, covering her early life and first foray into film:

Born Helene Bertha Amalie Riefenstahl in Berlin, Germany on the 22^nd of August, 1902; she began her professional and artistic career as a dancer, her dancing style was uniquely her own and widely popular at the time. She continued to express herself through interpretive dance until she injured her knee in her early 20's, at which point she began her acting career.

Her acting career began shortly after the injury to her knee brought her career as a dancer to an end. She had a couple of undocumented and minor rolls, until 1925 when she was finally given the lead role in Arnold Fanck's new mountain film: Der Heilige Berg (The Holy Mountain) as the dancer Diotima.

The role of Diotima was written by Fanck specifically for Leni Riefenstahl. It is the first film that I watched in which Leni Riefenstahl was in front of the camera rather than behind it; it's a quality work with a great many interesting shots and scenes, Fanck does a great job filming the environment. At the time of my first viewing I was not familiar with Leni Riefenstahl's acting, as I said; nor was I familiar with Arnold Fanck's directing; and I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by both aspects of the film.

Riefenstahl gives a lovely performance as Diotima; the film also allows us a bit of insight as to what her dancing style and abilities were, which is wonderfully interesting, and I can only imagine that she was an even better dancer before her knee injury.

Leni went on to star in many other mountain films that were also directed by Arnold Fanck, of which I have now seen several. Generally she played an outgoing young girl, a very entertaining part and one that she did very well, which perhaps gives us a bit of insight as to what he personality was like in her youthful days.

Then Leni began her career as a director when the offer was made to her. Her first attempt at directing resulted in the breakthrough film Das Blaue Licht (The Blue Light) in 1932. With the support of Arnold Fanck, Béla Balázs, the production team at Henry R. Sokal-Film of Berlin, and many others; Riefenstahl was not only able to direct her first film, but she also starred in the leading role of the film as Junta; and not only that, but Leni also co-wrote the film, edited the film, and helped to produce the film.

The work was an absolute breakthrough for Riefenstahl. The film launched her new career as a complicated director. One that would lead her to be both praised and criticized, one that was undoubtedly one of the most influential in the history of cinema and film making.