This is
an interesting movie, although it’s certainly an uncomfortable one to
watch. Also, I know it’s from 2008, but
seeing how citizens are swept up in the rhetoric felt familiar to me. (Not to get all Godwin’s – I’m just saying
that it was more disturbing to see it now than it would’ve been several years
ago.)
Based on
a play, Good follows the story of
John Halder, a literature professor at a German university in the 1930s. John is just trying to do his best, but between
the demands of his work and his family (including an ailing mother with
dementia,) he’s struggling. When he
publishes a book involving a theme of “compassionate euthanasia,” he’s
surprised to attract the attention of the Nazi party, who like his ideas. John doesn’t particularly want anything to do
with the party, but the winning combination of cushy perks and veiled threats persuade
him, and he soon finds himself rather disconcertingly rising through the ranks.
I need to
note that the film captures an important aspect of this place and period: by and large, people didn’t know that the
Nazis were Nazis, not the way that we
do. A lot people were caught up in the
promises, others didn’t know too many of the specifics of what the Nazis stood
for, still others assumed that their more disturbing rhetoric was just a lot of
talk, and very few had any idea just how far it would go. Obviously, that doesn’t mitigate anything
that happened, not even a shred – obviously. But this is what feels familiar to me. Seeing people gleefully showing up to a
parade or a book burning without thinking too deeply about why they’re doing
it, and seeing some who are against
the Nazis and what they stand for dismissing them as mostly-ineffectual
radicals; not anyone they’d want leading their government, of course, but the
prospect of actual genocide wasn’t even on their radar. It starts slowly. Ideas get coopted, twisted. Propaganda gets made. Freedoms are worn away, little by
little. And before they know it, they’re
in the middle of something unspeakable.
Overall,
I feel like it’s a film whose ideas are somewhat better than its execution –
the story feels overstuffed at times, and there are stretches where I think it
loses the aim of what it’s trying to say – but it’s most effective, to me, at
creating this atmosphere. I like the scenes
between John and his Jewish friend Maurice, how we see the progression of time
and the growing stranglehold of the Nazi party by their changing circumstances. John, by the way, is played by Viggo
Mortensen (for the second summer in a row, I rewatched Lord of the Rings, so I was primed to see him on my screen,) and
Jason Isaacs – Lucius Malfoy himself – gives a strong performance as
Maurice. The film also features Guy Henry
and Kevin Doyle (Molesley from Downton
Abbey) in small roles.
Jodie
Whittaker plays Anne, one of John’s students.
Her character is a good window into how the Nazis rose to power. We of course understand the horror in what’s
going on, but for her, a college student who feels at a loss looking for
something to believe in, they compellingly fill a void. Anne argues that a group that gives so many
ordinary German citizens such hope couldn’t be bad, and that it’s the duty of
people like John to get involved to ensure that the ship is steered in the “right”
direction.
Disturbing
stuff, needless to say. When this is the
focus of the character, I’m intrigued by Anne as a dark reflection to help
understand this horrific period of history.
I’m less interested, though, in her attraction to John and the will-they
won’t-they of him potentially having an affair with one of his students. It’s predictable, and what’s worse, it
distracts from the larger story at hand.
Accent Watch
RP
(everyone is speaking “The King’s German” in this film, hehe.)
Recommend?
In
General
– Maybe. Though not as good as I think
it could’ve been, it’s engrossing.
Jodie
Whittaker
– Again, maybe. This is a very “half and
half” character for me. When her scenes
aren’t about whether or not John is going to sleep with her, Anne is quite
interesting.
Warnings
No comments:
Post a Comment