I'm not really sure why, but I've always had a fascination with the subject of Nazi Germany. (Those who know me are aware that I have a fascination with a lot of subjects…) Besides the historical aspects of the entire period, it is the fact that such an event was allowed to go on and everyone was too afraid to do anything to stop it. I have older friends whose families either lived in Germany during this period or had family that spent time in concentration camps. What scares me is that there are people living today who still believe that the Holocaust didn’t happen. Even worse, there are those who still embrace the Nazi way of thinking. (Ironically, they themselves serve as perfect examples of why selective breeding might not be a bad idea…) Anytime I have the opportunity to watch films about World War II, I jump at it. Oddly enough, most of what I've seen is of a documentary nature.

The only exceptions were my recent acquisition of some of the old Disney cartoons that put Donald Duck into Nazi Germany and a couple of movies that were made about the subject, in Germany, from the German perspective. I'm not talking about propaganda films, but actual motion pictures that dared broach the subject of how bad Germany was under Hitler's rule. Both films, "Council of the Gods" and "Rotation," were recently released by First Run Features and I had the pleasure of having the opportunity to review them. (If you get a chance to pick up the DVDs of either, I recommend them both.)

Well, First Run is once again elevating the quality of my collection with the release of 1968's "I Was Nineteen," which is an autobiographical account of a young Russian soldier whose forces helped to bring about the end of the war. The kicker is that the soldier is of German descent and as such, the film deals with the mental anguish he must face having to fight what are technically his own people. The film offers not only a powerful exposé of the lengths the Nazis resorted to in their final days in power, but a deeply psychological effect it had on one young man with split allegiances. The movie's strength lies in the fact that neither story is overpowered by the other.

The transfer on the film varies in quality, but it is certainly good enough to make it an easy enough watch. Like the two films I mentioned previously, I was somewhat taken aback by how good the film was, not only in terms of the writing, but in the acting. Often older films like these are hindered by a stiff style of acting, with a kind of staccato delivery of dialogue. This is not the case here, these German actors are extremely talented and their performances elevate the features to a level of realism that makes them wholly believable.

There are those who might not 'get into' the film as it suffers from the double jeopardy of being in black & white and subtitled, but that shouldn't stop the staunch film enthusiast looking for films that offer perspectives as much as they entertain.

Directed by: Konrad Wolf
Starring: Jaecki Schwarz, Wassili Liwanow, Alexej Ejboshenko, Galina Polskich, Jenny Grollmann, Michael Glusski
Extras: Newsreels, Introductory Essay, Set Design Gallery, Biographies and Filmographies
Specifications: German w/ English subtitles, B&W, Dolby Digital 2.0
Studio: First Run Features
Release Date: 10/23/2007
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website
Website

We'll give I Was Nineteen a B+.