Leni Riefenstahl: A New Documentary Exposes the Nazi Propagandist’s Deflections
An unflinching look at the life and lies of Hitler’s favorite filmmaker, forcing a reckoning with her legacy.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” Leni Riefenstahl would famously declare when confronted about her past, a past inextricably linked to the Nazi regime. While she eagerly discussed her innovative cinematic techniques and later work with the Nuba people of Sudan, her role as a key architect of Nazi propaganda remained a topic she desperately avoided. Riefenstahl lived for nearly 60 years after the fall of the Third Reich, dying in 2003 at the age of 101, leaving behind a legacy shrouded in deflection, distortion, and denial. “I don’t want to talk about it” became her de facto mantra.
Andres Veiel’s new documentary, Riefenstahl, now playing in select theaters, fearlessly delves into the life and career of this controversial figure. It serves as an exhaustive and arguably definitive portrait,meticulously examining Riefenstahl’s personal archive and presenting a complete picture,warts and all. Veiel’s approach isn’t to simply demonize Riefenstahl. He acknowledges her undeniable artistry and technical skill, notably highlighting how her 1938 film, Olympia, documenting the Berlin Olympics, revolutionized the art of filmmaking. This film, however, became a powerful tool of propaganda, masking the regime’s true nature behind a facade of athletic prowess and national unity. The documentary, though, meticulously deconstructs Riefenstahl’s persistent defense that she was merely an artist, apolitical and disinterested in nazism, a naive innocent caught in the tides of history.
The Evidence Against Innocence
History paints a starkly different picture than the one Riefenstahl presented. She was, by all accounts, captivated by Hitler and enthusiastically embraced the role of the Reich’s official myth-maker. While she maintained ignorance regarding the Holocaust, evidence suggests a more complicit role. Investigators discovered instances where her actions indirectly contributed to tragedy. Such as, she allegedly ordered the removal of Jewish workers from a film set, actions that may have led to their subsequent persecution.
One particularly revealing moment in Veiel’s documentary captures a TV interviewer asking Riefenstahl about her alleged frequent cinema visits with Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi propaganda minister. Goebbels’ diary suggests thes outings occurred roughly ten times. Riefenstahl’s reaction is explosive, a visceral eruption of fury. She doesn’t want to talk about it.
“I don’t want to talk about it”
Leni Riefenstahl
A Monstrous Subject,A Compelling Story
Riefenstahl is,in many ways,a documentarian’s ideal subject: complex,unsympathetic,and burdened by a dark history.Her fabrications and denials provide ample material for scrutiny.She represents a figure constantly battling against reality, prone to outbursts when held accountable. This inherent tension between subject and filmmaker is a recipe for compelling drama. Even posthumously, Riefenstahl’s letters, contradictory statements, and explosive interviews offer a wealth of material for examination.
The Value of Uncomfortable Truths
Documentaries that force subjects to confront uncomfortable truths frequently enough prove more insightful than those where subjects readily offer facts. The struggle to extract truth, the diversions, and the puzzles all contribute to a richer narrative.The 2015 HBO docu-series, The Jinx, became famous when its subject, accused killer Robert Durst, was caught on a hot mic apparently confessing to the crimes. However, such smoking guns are rare. The truth is often elusive, and conflicting perspectives are the norm. Most compelling documentaries thrive on the friction between opposing viewpoints.
Errol Morris and the Art of Interrogation
Oscar-winning director Errol Morris is renowned for his direct interrogations of controversial American figures, including Steve Bannon and Donald Rumsfeld. Though, his 1988 film, The Thin Blue Line, remains a landmark achievement. This forensic examination of a policeman’s murder in Dallas presents a cast of unsavory characters: false witnesses, liars, and incompetents. The Thin Blue Line masterfully navigated this web of deceit, ultimately identifying the true killer and exonerating an innocent man on death row. Yet, even in this triumph, the complexities of truth and narrative persisted. Randall Adams, the wrongly convicted man, later sued Morris for the rights to his story, wanting to control his narrative and profit from it. He didn’t want to be the subject of someone else’s masterpiece.
The Mirror’s Reflection
Near the conclusion of Veiel’s documentary, Riefenstahl prepares for a final television interview. She meticulously examines her reflection, adjusting camera angles, and bracing herself to deflect tough questions and present herself in the most favorable light. In this moment,a flicker of empathy arises,recognizing that Riefenstahl’s actions,in a way,mirror our own. We all frame our lives as narratives, frequently enough casting ourselves as heroes, even when the evidence suggests or else. effective documentaries tell unusual stories about unique subjects. but the truly great ones expose universal human frailties, revealing that we all, regardless of success or failure, Nazi sympathizer or not, operate from a similar desire to control our narrative and present our version of the truth, hoping no one interrupts.
