Customer Reviews

Hitler's Diaries - Starring Adolf Hitler: The Rise and Fall of Adolf Hitler [VHS]

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

 

 

Finally somebody got it right. I agree, there has never been a more realistic and authentic film on Adolf Hitler. The movie is truly mesmerizing. The images are shocking. Women and children are machine gunned, cities are destroyed, soldiers are killed in bloody battles, Jews are marched into ditches and shot. Chilling stuff. Hitler's quotes are direct from Mein Kampf and Table Talk or from those who knew him such as Speer and his boyhood friend Kubizek. Hitler's voice forms the sountrack, emphasizing that it was not what Hitler said, but how he said it, the music and melody of his voice which droves adoring crowds wild. Hitler said his was a "religious movement" and numerous scholars agree Hitler had a "cult-like following." Hitler's Mein Kampf is littered with occult references, such as "The Lords of the Earth" and "Divine Providence" and Hitler tells of visions and hearing a "voice" which saved his life. Goebbel's referred to Hitler as "god" and likened him to "Jesus Christ" and "John the Baptist." German churches were Nazified, the cross being replaced by the Swastika. On the day Roosevelt died, Hitler and Goebbel's turned to astrological charts to divine the future. Hitler's personal library contained hundreds of books on religion and the occult, including "Magic: History, Theory and Practice" (1923), by Ernst Schertel. Schertel gave Hitler a personal copy with a handwritten dedication. Hitler's copy is covered with notes and pencil lines along the margins, with thick lines next to the passage "He who does not carry demonic seeds within him will never give birth to a new world." Only a small portion of this well researched and scholarly film concerns the occult, but the fact that these film makers got it right goes to the heart of the authenticity of this movie. Highly recommended.

If you are a serious student of the Third Reich and sincerely interested in what made Adolf Hilter tick, stay away from this very amateurish, two-hour pastiche of old newsreels mixed in with clips from Eva Braun's private movie film in a production so cheap the director doesn't even provide a narrator for commentary. As it is the "narration" is in the form of largely unattested quotes and blatant misstatements of fact that roll up the screen continuously, blocking out scenes that often have nothing to do with the narrative. Director Joseph's reliance on out-of-context quotes from unreliable sources, August Kubizek's memoir, for instance, undercut some of the solidly factual information this film presents, if you have the patience and judgment to dig it out. The constant theme throughout this movie that Hitler and the Nazi party were somehow in league with the occult is sheer nonsense; Hitler personally ridiculed the occultists and none of the zany supernatural claptrap this movie offers as motivating Adolf Hitler is born out by the people who really knew him. I give this movie one star because I can't rate it lower than that. Don't waste your money or time on it. If you're interested in Hitler the man, start with Ian Kershaw's two-volume biography and avoid stuff like "Hitler's Diaries."

This is truely the worst compilation of "anything" Hitler said.
My biggest complaint is I ordered a cheaper, used version and they slammed me with a new one for over $40.00!
Maybe if this was a $9.95 deal it would be worth my while.
Nothing new is revealed. And what the text actually shows you are complete fabrications half the time!
There is nothing "hypnotic, or mesmerising" about any of this.
Stay far away from this disgrace.
I've yet to completely watch it through to the end because it just leaves a bad sour taste in my mouth...and wallet.

Hitler's Diaries is frightening, violent, and thought provoking. I've seen some of this footage before, but nothing like this. It reminds me of Felini's Satyricon, or maybe, Hitler on acid. The clips of the hangings, the murders, the bombings, and the Jews being marched into ditches and shot, just blew me away. Hitler was the devil on earth.

This frightening, hypnotic, mesmerizing movie relies entirely on breathtaking archival photographs, films, and music from Nazi Germany to tell Hitler's story, from his viewpoint. Instead of a narrator, the film uses Hitler's actual voice as much of the soundtrack, and rolling subtitles which provide actual quotes from the writings and speeches of Hitler. This film creates a hypnotic mood which allows you to actually experience what it must have been like when Hitler was growing up and after he took power, and it gives the viewer insight into Hitler's beliefs, why he thought he had been chosen by "providence," and how he used terror to take power, and how he used terror to wage war against innocent civilians and then exterminate the Jews. Hitler was a crazed genius. A monster. He may have been the devil. The pictures and actual films of civilians and Jews being murdered, and cities being bombed and destroyed is not for the faint hearted.

A question is asked at the outset of this incredibly multi-faceted, multi-layered film, and at the end, Hitler provides the answer. The question: "If there is a God, and if God is the creator of allthings, then did God create Hitler? Why?" The Answer: Hitler believed by driving the Jews from Europe, he was "doing the work of the Lord" and the Lord chose Hitler in order to "Lead God's people back to the homeland." What does this mean? Israel (which means: "God's Strength") was reestablished as a State in the years following Hitler's death, because of and by the Jews driven from Europe by Hitler. This implies God created Hitler and caused the holocaust so the Jews would be forced to return to Israel: The Second Exodus. The film maker does not say this. Thisparticular message is up to the viewer to discern. Unfortunately, this movie has so much going on, so many hidden or subtle multi-faceted messages, probably most viewers won't catch on. The very end of the film, for example, depicts a dancing Hitler. Hitler looks like the "Trickster." Who is the Trickster? The Devil. Fortunately, the imagery and photography are so dazzling, it really doesn't matter if one catches all the nuances and hidden meanings. In short, Hitler's Diaries is a work of art, and art is always subject to interpretation.

Hypnotic. Shocking. Frightening. These are just some of the adjectives which come to mind is describing this very unusual movie about a very evil man. There is also something very "stream of consciousness" about this movie. It is different, there is no doubt about that! The strength of this movie is it doesn't make judgments but presents Hitler from his own point of view, using his words which appear on the screen, and his voice as part of the sound track. Hitler was the ultimate "evil genius," a shaman who could whip crowds into a frenzy. As this film shows, Hitler's was a fantastic speaker. His mass meetings were like revival meetings. Women and men scream and cry out as Hitler gestulates and cries out and whips them into a hysterical frenzy. The sountrack is amazing and so is the music. There is footage here of Hitler I've never seen before. This movie is also different from anything I've seen before on Hitler. It is very "artsy," which some people might not like. It doesn't begin with his birth. Instead, Hitler jumps right out at you and is in your face, and it is frightening, even more so when you realize the German people looked up to him like a god. I also learned things about Hitler I never knew before, such as, when he was 17, still living in Austria, he heard a "Voice" which told him he would become the leader of Germany! That's pretty amazing. The atrocities are also amazing, even more so if you slow the film down and then realize crowds of people, including women and children, are gathered round excitedly watching their neighbors being shot or hanged. Some of the pictures and film clips are so horrible, so frightening, and so shocking, it is hard to believe these things really happened just 60 years ago. Not everything about this film was "amazing." There were some things I didn't like, or would change. Sometimes the scrolling subtitles were distracting. I wanted to read everything, which at times, interfered with my ability to fully concentrate on the really amazing images and film clips. If you don't like to read, you should probably not buy this film. I watched this film with two friends. When it was over, we watched it again.

Same old stock footage with a few random quotes. Not particular organized or focused. May seem impressive if you've never been exposed to this before. ... not worth the waste of time or money.

The Hitler Diaries portrays Adolph Hitler for wahte he was: An Evil Genius. Germany was in a period of deep humiliation and despair after World War I. Their economy was in shambles and the people needed someone to beleive in. Along came the commanding Adolph Hitler whose goal was to create a strong image. Unfortunately Hitler had a troubled childhood. His father beat him without mercy. However he had great talents as an artist, engineer, and an organizer. Hitler was the one who designed the Autobahn which exceded highways in the United States at the time.

Unfortunately with all his abilities, he had troubles deep in his soul. He fought viciously for power and turned against anyone who did not see his way. Also, his feeling towards non Aryans particularly Jews was absolutely repulsive. This led to difficult times to the Jewish people and other minority factions within Germany. The hangings, shootings, and beatings are documented here and they are all so gruesome.

The footage from World War II is documented here. The reality of all the lives lost and the cities destroyed just boggle the mind. Amazingly Hitler fought on until the bitter end. Cruelly he turned on his own people. Then out of desperation he killed himself.

As many painful moments as there are in this documentary, I must say that the world needs to know what can happen when a madman has too much power. I cannot imagine how so many of the German people could have stood by and let so many innocent people get killed by this madman. This film should serve as a blueprint to all nations that power is nice but fairness to all people is essential.

Another interesting note that will echo the comments of other reviewers is the statements that Hitler made to drive the Jews out of Europe as he leads his God's people to the Promised Land. Many Jews later escaped to Palestine and three years after World War II, Israel achieved statehood. It makes one wonder would Israel have existed without Hitler and his atrocities?

Anyway, this is a fine document of World History in spite of all the violence and horrifying moments. May something like this never happen again.