‘Propaganda in Nazi German film – How German directors use
cinematography to effectively portray certain ideologies in the Triumphant of
the Will (1935) and The Eternal Jew (1940)’
Propaganda is defined as
“information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or
publicize a particular political cause or point of view”. Simply put,
propaganda is to communicate a certain political outlook to an audience that is
likely to be indoctrinated. Propaganda in film has to be convincing to
indoctrinate the people either explicitly or implicitly. Directors use
cinematography techniques in film to highlight these political ideologies of the
subject matter to the audience. Different Cinematography techniques: sound, use
of camera, colour, lighting and editing are integral to a director’s portrayal
of the subject matter of a documentary or fictional film. Nazi Germany
propaganda revolved around the party’s extreme ideology and political outlook
during the Second World War. Analyzing and comparing both The Triumphant of the
Will (1935) and The Eternal Jew (1940) will indicate the ideologies that are emphasized by the said cinematography techniques.
Trying to correctly define propaganda results
in negative connotations: “this is partly because propaganda had in general
usage become a dirty word: it describes a phenomenon to be found in
‘totalitarian regimes’ but not, or so we would like to think, in ‘liberal
democracies’” (Taylor, 2006). Maynard (1975) argues that “the term propaganda
is a neutral one. It is, by itself, neither good nor bad, moral nor immoral,
justifiable nor reprehensible”. It depends on the context to which propaganda
is involved in that describes the positive or negative outcomes. Perhaps, it is
the social constraints of the public that signify different propaganda measures
in distaste or approval settings. After all, the audience are interpreters of the propaganda and can dismiss it accordingly.
Propaganda is a reoccurring part of today’s society
that comes in all forms from internet adverts to political posters and flyers. Certain
times of the year such as an election can induce a vast amount of political
propaganda to coax the public into voting for a certain party. Elements of
syntax and language rhetoric need to be taken into account when producing these
slogans that accompany the artistic subject matter. The same artistic values
have to be introduced into documentaries or fictional film.
Cinema has always been an entertaining medium
for all classes of society. Using this form of entertainment as propaganda, to
transmit messages to the audience, was inevitable: “cinema’s strengths lie in
the fact that, like any other art, it imbues an idea of feeling and with
captivating form but, unlike other arts, cinema is actually cheap, portable and
unusually graphic” (Reeves, 1999). More
so, it captured the mass audience that collectively came to the popular picture
houses to watch showings in Western society in the early 20th
century.
Early pieces of propaganda were
the silent short films of the Spanish American war in 1898 by Vitagraph
Studios. These motion pictures involved hired actors to re-enact the events of
the war in make-shift settings in a studio. They were fictional tools of
glorification of the American victories in several battles such as the Battle
of Santiago. Propaganda in cinema was also exacted by the Bolsheviks of Russia:
“for the Bolsheviks were convinced that cinema was singularly well place to
translate their messages into a form that would make an impact on the vast
‘largely illiterate’ population of the new Soviet Union” (Reeves, 1999). ‘The
Independence of Romania’ (1912) by Aristide Demetriade is another example of
purposeful propaganda in silent film. It was the first ever feature length
fictional piece that aimed to influence the public of the suitable involvement
of Romania in the Balkan War.
In the case of Nazi Germany, it
is the very extreme side of propaganda and indoctrination that has become known
as the ‘golden age of propaganda’. More so, this era is the epitome for
totalitarianism. The Nazi’s avid uses of print and technological media were
important platforms of propaganda messages. An exemplar of an iconic print
poster would be the ‘one people, one nation, one leader!’ This represented
Hitler in 1938 as “both charismatic superman and man of the people” (Welch,
2011). Posters were also used to condemn the Jewish and Russian people. The
ever present theme throughout Nazi propaganda was that of National Socialism:
“the cult of the leader, which surpassed any normal level of trust in political
leadership, is central to an understanding of the appeal of National Socialism.
It was undoubtedly the most important theme running through Nazi propaganda”
(Welch, 2011).
Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi
party, and Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s minister of propaganda, saw “film’s
ability to mobilize emotions and mobilize minds, to create overpowering
illusions and capturing audiences” (Rentschler, 1996). At the time of the Third
Reich, there were “1,094 features premiered from 1933 to the end of the war in
1945” (Rentschler, 1996). These are obvious signs that the cinema is a powerful
tool to not only entertain but brainwash the audience. Moreover, the longevity
of such films is still widely available today for public viewing.
A very powerful piece of
propaganda documentary in this era is the “Triumph of the Will”, 1935(See Video Clip). The motion picture
documents a Nazi rally in Nuremburg. It runs for a whole 1 hour and 44 minutes.
Without knowing any of the film’s background, the title connotes a rising power
that has desired to become more and more substantial. In this case, the rising
power is the Nazi party. Direct references to this rising power can be seen in
Hitler’s speeches that state that there were 7 original members of the party
and now in the documentary it had grown considerably.
The opening sequence of the film
pans from the iconic eagle on top of the Swastika symbol to the title of the
piece. Already, there is emphatic symbolism of the eagle and Swastika representing
the Nazi party and signifies the ideology of white supremacy or a ‘master
race’. Typically, Riefenstahl is using the close up of these symbols to portray
the Nazis as a totalitarian and dominant force. In the opening titles the
‘documentary is produced by the order of the Fuhrer (Hitler)’. Therefore, the film
has his seal of approval along with his polemic view of how he and the party
want to be represented.
A biblical sense of symbolism and
imagery is captured by the camera in the entrance of Hitler and his commanding officers.
The high camera angle depicts the extensive crowd saluting Hitler with the
trademark Nazi straight arm gesture. Hitler and his deputies walk down a path
made between the crowds on either side. It is an inter-textual reference to the
bible’s crossing of the Red Sea by Moses. Clearly, the director is signifying
Hitler as the aforementioned super human and his unwavering leadership that
brainwashes the population into following him. Hitler’s speech is a key part of
the whole film. The camera constantly cuts from the speaker to the crowd and
his deputies. They are constantly listening intently to every word and
physically looking up to Hitler on his podium. This reiterates the domineering
and almost God-like status that Hitler portrays. His overawing presence
captivates the audience, which makes the whole film a strong piece of
propaganda for the ideologies of the Nazi regime.
The Eternal Jew, 1940 (See Video Clip) is another
Nazi propaganda documentary that revolves around anti-Semitic ideologies. Directed
by Fritz Hippler, this film unfairly describes the Jews as ‘a plague that
threatens the health of the Aryan people’. A narrator comments throughout the
film on their daily lives, which results in very negative denotations. There is
a sharp contrast between the commentary and the happy Jewish people that
envelopes the text in a dark tone. The audience at the time of the
documentary’s release would easily be brainwashed by this extreme piece. Binary
oppositions are evident in this text as the ‘them and us’ division. Jewish
people are seen as the 'aliens' that are depleting resources for the ‘original
inhabitants’ of European countries. A fear factor sets into the German people
towards the Jews. All Jewish people are wrongly seen as deceiving, crafty and devious.
Constant camera shots of
individual Jewish people along with the commentary shroud the person in a
sinister tone. It suggests that the Eternal Jew is the ‘perpetual sponger’.
Criticism of the Jewish people is constantly apparent with the camera focusing
on the daily lives of the Jewish culture domestically. In their homes they are
described as 'dirty and bug-ridden' with close-up shots of flies on the walls to
try reiterating this notion. They are compared to parasites and leeches that
buy and sell but produce nothing for their homeland. References by the narrator
deem the Jewish population as foreign bodies even if they are high aristocrats
or intermarried with the Aryan race. Several shots focus
on certain aristocratic Jews that have a high status in countries but are still
singled out as a foreign body. It is clear this film aims to brainwash the
German public into thinking that the Jews are bad people and, ultimately, need
to be eradicated.
Inter-textual references to the famous Jewish banker Meyer
Amschel Rothschild movie produced in America is placed directly into this
documentary. The narrator uses excerpts of the movie to provide evidence of
Jewish negligence with taxes. Also, it evolves the ideology of the Jewish sense
of immigration to different to countries for added wealth. Furthermore, the idea
that the Jews are trying to take over the host’s country and subsequently
become natives. Hippler utilizes a still of a map as a diagram of the Jewish
‘world domination’ of banks. Evidently, the Nazi regime were trying to completely
destroy this expansion.
Both documentaries are exemplars of Nazi propaganda.
Although, the subject matter is different, there are similar ideologies that
are portrayed through cinematography. Starting sequences of both films
immediately go into the ideologies of the text. Triumph of the Will uses
symbolism to immediately address the polemic view that is conducted by the
Nazis. On the other hand, Hippler does not directly place any Nazi symbols to
confirm that this feature is from said party. Instead, the narrator uses the
word ‘us’ to imply that the Nazi party are behind this feature. Uses of music
contrast with both documentaries. The sinister and sombre music of the Eternal
Jew reflects the demonising view the Nazi party have of the Jews. Again, it is
the notion of threat that masks this text with ominous tones. Riefenstahl
implements a heroic and uplifting soundtrack to convey the ‘triumphant’
attitude of the whole piece.
Lighting is all natural in most
parts of the Eternal Jew as most camera shots are outside when viewing the
Jewish public. In the Triumph of the Will lighting is used to highlight Hitler
and the various other speakers when the documentary is filmed inside.
Unfortunately, the lighting is not of the best quality and shrouds the figures
in darkness. Nazi flags have both light and shade on them when the camera
captures them. A present audience would connote this as the director to try
glorifying the blazoned swastika but it also envelopes the flag in devious
connotations.
Clever editing has been utilized
to position the desired reading of each film in accordance with Nazi
propaganda. Hippler uses the narration as a form of instruction as well as an
information source throughout the documentary. Purposefully, the narration
coincides with the visual elements of this piece. For example, narrator states
that the mixture of Asian and Negro led to the birth of the Jewish features. At
the same time, the camera cuts to the Jewish men that the narrator unfairly
characterizes. It is this juxtaposition of narration and visual elements that
influence the audience into believing the authoritative documentary. Riefenstahl
aims to highlight the towering presence of the public speak in conjunction with
the expansive crowd.Consequently, it captures the gaze of admiration from the
public and Hitler’s deputies by looking up to Hitler literally and
metaphorically. Constant rapture of applause from the speaker’s orate is
showcased to elevate the epic surroundings of the rally.
Nazi German propaganda in film during the
Second World War is an integral communication channel that circulated within
the mass audience. Its main purpose was to indoctrinate the German public into
believing the harsh beliefs of the party. The Triumph of the Will and The Eternal Jew are
a small segment of the 15 percent of propaganda films that made up the whole
German movie industry at the time. Both documentaries would have been very
influential in War time and the rise of the Nazi party. This is due to the
effective cinematography techniques that are utilized on the technology
available in that era.
Links to all video clips mentioned above:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WN79ti93NBY (The Eternal Jew, 1940)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHs2coAzLJ8 (Triumph of the Will, 1935)
References
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