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Reviews of Recent Independent, Foreign, & Documentary Films in Theaters and DVD/Home Video
THE GOEBBELS EXPERIMENT
The diary of Nazi propaganda mastermind Joseph Goebbels comes to life as
actor Kenneth Branagh narrates from Goebbels’ personal journal,
beginning in 1924 when Goebbels "still hadn't found a real purpose in life,"
and ending in 1945 with the collapse of Nazi Germany, all the while accompanied by archival
footage and Nazi propaganda.
Despite its revealing first person perspective, the documentary
is really a vague timeline of Goebbels' rise to power, ending with the fall of the Reich. Interwoven are his inconsistent views of the Führer
(“Hitler has broken his word five times”). But Director Lutz Hachmeister relies almost solely
on Goebbels' diary, and as a result, the documentary fails to provide the
analytical and careful study this subject deserves. We never learn the
inner-workings of Goebbels' propaganda machine, and therefore, we don't see
the critical role it played in facilitating the rise of Hitler. There’s footage of German students
burning books that were
considered filthy and un-German, but no explanation or detailed
account of how Goebbels' propaganda campaign achieved this ignition of
nationalistic spirit. This shortcoming is consistent throughout; we observe the
result of propaganda, but not the process, and thus, we aren't exposed to
its danger.
To the director’s credit, The Goebbels Experiment distinguishes
itself by attempting to find the correlation between Goebbels' self-pity and
his conviction in the superiority of the Aryan
race. The film provocatively suggests Goebbels' lust to control public opinion was a projection of
his
own self-loathing after being rejected as child. Even this fascinating psychological
inquiry falls short. Following the timeline is too high a priority. When the film is over, we are left
wondering what exactly the Goebbels experiment was. Timothy Small
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