Customer Reviews

Here I Stand: Martin Luther

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

HERE I STAND is a Luther documentary, not to be confused with the drama LUTHER. Documentaries need not be boring, but this one is. Even so, there are worse things than boring--like deceptive, which this movie is not (in contrast to the revisionist LUTHER). HERE I STAND covers the length of Luther's life, including his peasant background, his struggles as a monk, his "born again" experience, his challenges to the authority of the Roman Catholic Church, and his Bible translation work (not the first to translate the Bible into German, but important for doing so from the original languages of Hebrew and Greek rather than from Latin).

The significant advantage of this DVD over the flashy and popular LUTHER is that it actually addresses Luther's theological significance, particularly his apprehension and dissemination of two biblical truths: (1) that salvation is by faith not good works (sola fide), and (2) that the ultimate spiritual authority is the Bible not the insitutional Church (sola scriptura). Also, the DVD shows Luther's emphasis on biblical authority not as original to him, but in the context of other reformers such as Wycliffe and Hus, which is helpful since there is a tendency of some today to overestimate Luther to the exclusion of others.

In addition to greater theological and contextual transparency, HERE I STAND is also more honest when it comes to portraying Luther's character, particularly his "rough, stormy, altogether warlike" temperament, in contrast to LUTHER, which presents a Luther who is bold, but only in a principled, noble way, which is far from the whole picture. This movie quotes Luther exhorting the princes to "knock down, strangle and stab" revolting peasants, and recognizes Luther's role in the 100,000 peasant deaths, some of which were tortured. Artwork is shown of Luther with two faces. HERE I STAND is a Luther movie for those wanting more context, less bias, more biographical detail, and the theological significance regarding Luther. However, the person wanting entertainment, an emotional experience, or inspiration to zealous action, would probably like LUTHER better, just know that its hero is whitewashed and largely a fiction.

One serious flaw of the documentary is that while not entirely silent about Luther's dark side (as is LUTHER the drama), it barely hints at Luther's disgusting, shocking vulgarity of speech (words that can't be written here) towards both the Papacy and the Jewish people, much less his incitements to persecution, even violence, against Jews. Both this antisemitism and his perpetuation of the Catholic idea of church-state union are part of the bad side of Luther's legacy that contributed first to religious wars, such as Thirty Years War, and centuries later to Church complicity with Nazis in Holocaust. This DVD does discuss Luther's legacy, but notes his contributions to the Reformation and not such negatives as the damage done to Jewish-Christian relations by Luther's association of the name of Christ with unbiblical hatred towards and persecution of Jews, and so the movie misses an opportunity to provide a needed historical corrective for today's Christians ignorant of the Church's antisemitic past. Consequently, the credibility of Christian witness is diminished in the sight of nonChristians (Jewish, Muslim, atheists, etc) who view us as untrustworthy hypocrites when we point out violence and antisemitism in Islamic or Catholic history. Whether our silence is due to shame, complicity, or more benignly, to ignorance, it needs to be publicly and widely addressed and unto now a balanced Luther movie, which could do just that, has yet to be made, though, as discussed, this DVD is more historically honest than LUTHER, which neither mentions Luther's worst nor his best (the gospel that saves!).

"Here I Stand: Martin Luther" is a superbly produced, enthusiastically recommended, 129-minute, full color documentary on the life, work, and historical impact of Protestant Reformation leader Martin Luther. This informed and informative DVD production is divided into two part: Luther's Life (70 minutes) and Luther's Legacy (60 minutes). Martin Luther, who began his ecclesiastical career as a German cleric of the Roman Catholic Church, never wanted to be a famous religious leader and challenger to the dominance of the Catholic Church. Indeed, he had entered a monastery to get away from the world and seek his own private salvation. But in seeking that salvation he began to study the Bible and felt compelled to call what he perceived as the corruptions of the Church of Rome to account. He challenged the prevailing Medieval assumptions concerning religious authority, the nature of God, how Christians (including the clergy) should comport themselves, and how God brings salvation to men, women, and children. Although also available in a VHS format, the DVD format features a bonus: 'In the Footsteps of Martin Luther'.

This is a very thorough and complete look at Luther's life on his struggles and accomplishments in helping shape the modern world.It takes you to his place of birth in 1483 and every place in between until his passing in 1546. I have been deeply moved by whatching this. It's broken down into two parts, Luther's life (70 minutes) and his legacy (60 minutes). Then it finishes with a (27 minute )bonus feature In the footsteps of Martin Luther. It shows his immense faith he grew to gain in belief in the word of God being the only true athourity in understanding salvation. romans 1:17 and ephesians 2:8&9 being two of his key scriptures to receiving, and having what God has done for us in Jesus Christ. I reccomend this to anyone interested in the reformation and what took place during those times which it still has relevance to our lives today. Check it out. Louis Ost

I bought this DVD based on the other reviews and frankly I was stunned when I got it. It looks like someone made it in a couple of days. It's just voice overs and pictures of old paintings and documents. No introduction, no comments by historians, no presenter visiting the places where events took place, no dramatic reenactments and no real analysis. It is boring beyond words.
To make this awful production complete the voice they use for Luther is ridiculous. He sounds like he's doing a voice over for a B movie trailer.
Don't make the mistake I did.
Don't buy this DVD.

This is an excellent and long DVD with lots of information. It's quite easy to understand. It's a great starting point for learning about the Reformation and even the Peasants' Revolt.

This video is an excellent overview of the Lutheran Reformation. It is filmed on location, except for the Imperial Diet in Worms. The building where that happened no longer exists, thanks to some marauding hordes. I regularly use it to introduce confirmation students (junior and adult) to Luther and the Reformation, both topics not always well taught in public education. It is concise and easily understood, yet full of detail. Bainton, now no longer living, does a very good job on camera of making Luther come alive. Each time I view this film I catch something I missed earlier. I wish it were available on DVD. My tape copy has been played many, many times.

This biography does not have actors, but relies on pictures and architecture and historical recreations of the time of Luther's life and old manuscripts to tell his story. It is the most accurate picture of his life and its importance historically than any of the other films.