Leni Riefenstahl dies at 101; Known for Nazi Era Propoganda Films

AP

[sonsofliberty2000]

BERLIN (AP) Leni Riefenstahl, best known for her Nazi-era propaganda films, has died at age 101, a German magazine reports, quoting a long-time friend.

[Barney Gumble]

"A remarkable woman."

She was Hitler's stooge and friend. Why give her any respect?

[xp38]

I've sat through both Triumph of the Will and Olympia and found both overly long and approaching boredom. Triumph of the Will has a certain sweep which keeps you awake but I'm not sure most today could take Olympia. Some touted film classics really don't deliver. It's one thing to see a few clips which we will undoubtedly in the next few days and another to sit through the entire thing. These films are black and white documentaries of two events you have to have some interest in to be even remotely involved. They may have been hot stuff back in the thirties but for me they don't stand the test of time. On the other hand Buster Keaton's The General will be making people laugh for ever.

[ffusco]

Hey Montag,

I agree that it is unfair. Both filmakers ought to be regarded as evil geniuses.

[The Electrician]

I have started a thread based on the NY Times obit here, and have included a link to this thread.

[packrat35]

You can buy Birth of a Nation DVD for $5.99 in the bargin section at Best Buy. At least I did.

[Heyworth]

If nothing else, Riefenstahl will be remembered forever as an example of what happens when an artist places their own artistry over the subject matter. It's high art in the service of utter evil.

But her story is a lot more complicated than anyone is allowing here. One fact is that, far from being Hitler's personal filmmaker, she only made one film after "Olympia," largely because Goebbels was annoyed at the way she highlighted Jesse Owens in that film. The follow-up film, "Tiefland" was only finished long after the war, and it's apparently hard to find anything remotely supportive of the Nazi philosophy there (it's also very hard to actually find the film). After witnessing war crimes in Poland, she resigned a job to make films at the front for the propaganda effort and basically spent the next five years up in the mountains making "Tiefland" and dodging phone calls from the Nazi establishment.

Another interesting sidelight is that when she actually came to Hollywood in 1938 (officially to promote "Triumph," but also looking for a job) the anti-Nazi leftists succeeded in getting every meeting cancelled. Had she made "Triumph," then taken a job in Hollywood and sat out the war there, would she still be considered as evil? (That's what Douglas Sirk did--the Nazis loved him in the 1930s) What was her crime, making that film, or not rejecting Hitler sooner? If the film had been a piece of junk, instead of an amazingly seductive piece of propaganda, would anyone care?

[rockfish59]

Leni started young!

[weegee]

Filmmaker Lumpy Riefenstahl is deeply saddened....

[weegee]

Add filmmaker Fritz Lang, who left his wife behind when she chose to remain in Nazi Germany.

Mr. Lang was offered a position as Nazi propagandist and he refused.

[rockfish59]

Lumpy!

LOL!

[weegee]

Don't forget about the self-imposed American ban on Song Of The South (which is set AFTER the Civil War).

[rockfish59]

I wonder if Leni knew about the filming of the starving Jews in the Warsaw ghetto?

[weegee]

Have to wonder if some of the libertarians on FR are members...

[Chancellor Palpatine]

Yup - that question crossed my mind before.

[quark]

That's Lumpy "Fat, Lying, Limousine-Leftist Pussbag" Riefenstahl to you, bub. < /sarcasm>

[weegee]

Leni Riefenstahl was one of the most talented directors ever. The only talent Moore has is selfpromotion, the jerk couldn't make decent film if his life depended on it.

Mr. Moore has successfully sold his agitprop to willing dupes. That makes him a successful filmmaker, they bought what he was selling.

That the Academy has also supported his works with Oscar nominations shows more support. It may be more of an embracing of message rather than technique (or even inspite of it) but some arbitors of public taste have said that his work is "decent" or better.

Was Hitler "talented" because he was succesful? No. Talent and success are unrelated. There are many talented people who's work is not recognized in their lifetime (if ever).

[CatoRenasci]

Yours is the more nuanced view of Reifenstahl I heard from the German emigre academic community in Santa Barbara and Los Angeles in the early '70s and which rings true to me. Some of them actually knew her, if not well, and respected her highly. I suppose I can't name names without from personal conversations without permission, but the people I heard this from (whether in seminars or personal conversations -- both in English and German) were world-reknowned philosphers, historians, writers, musicologists and musicians. Names you would recognize if you had anything more than a passing acquaintance with the high culture of central Europe in the first half of the 20th century. It's too bad she came to Hollywood in '38, not after the Hitler-Stalin Pact in '39 -- then Hollywoood would have been all over her and she'd have gotten that job.

[weegee]

If the film had been a piece of junk, instead of an amazingly seductive piece of propaganda, would anyone care?

The director of The Eternal Jew is not held the same high regard.

[u-89]

Your posts show a maturity and understanding that is in short supply these days. Too many are ruled by emotion rather than logic thus people can not distinguish between enjoying art for arts sake and politics. At this stage of the game it does not matter why Reifenstahl's films were made. They are works that transcend ideologies of the past and their obvious historic documentary value because they are high art (and the historic documentary value should not be underestimated).

Praising talent is not the endorsing anything other than the talent. I disagree with the politics of Kirk Douglas or Paul Newman but they are both credits to their craft. Only a few small minded hard core conservatives would condemn me for praising them. So should it be for Reifenstahl. She made valuable contributions and it's too bad she did not have a larger body of work to show for her life.