Product Details

• Actors: John Shea, Bill Nighy, Lucy Gutteridge, David Warner, Warren Clarke
• Directors: Jim Goddard
• Writers: Lukas Heller
• Producers: Aida Young, Edgar J. Scherick
• Format: Black & White, Color, EP, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 2
• Studio: Unicorn Video
• VHS Release Date: August 30, 1997
• Run Time: 135 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6304636962
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #322,497 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

The story of Helmut and Karl Hoffmann. Both come of age at the start of Hitler's power in Germany. Helmut joins the SS and eventually becomes a successful flag rank officer. Karl joins the SA and experiences the darker side of Nazism after the SA is disbanded and Karl is thrown into prison and later conscripted into the German army. Brother is pitted against brother until their relationship, and the Third Reich, stands in ruins.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An interesting perspective on a familiar topic, October 14, 2002

By 

Roger J. Buffington (Huntington Beach, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Hitler's SS: Portrait in Evil (DVD)

This movie views the rise of the Nazi regime from the perspective of two brothers, who are very ordinary people. At first each brother views the Nazis as just another political party. One brother becomes a full-time SS officer working for Heydrich, the other (who actually became a Nazi before his brother did) sees the evil of the Nazis sooner, and suffers for his outspokeness. The strength of the movie is its portrayal of ordinary Germans during this time period, and how they become caught up in the ugliness of the Nazi regime.
The acting is so-so, but not bad if your expectations are not high. Jose Ferrer plays only a modest role in this movie--he is not the star. Overall an entertaining movie that is worth a try. The quality of the DVD video is slightly below average.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Historian with an Opinion..., September 20, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Fountain Valley, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hitler's Ss [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I have viewed this title a few times. I think this is an excellent movie. Many movies from the World War II era commonly tell a small portion about the people's lives in NAZI Germany during the Third Reich. This movie collected all the bits and pieces and showed how different people from the start had their lives affected throughout this time. This is an excellent movie and I wish it received more publicity to exploit what it does best... inform people about life in the Third Reich. It also shows the innocence of the German people and how they were brainwashed and tricked by the NAZIS. Clearly documenting the civilians at this time.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting look at the SS' rold in Nazi Germany., June 19, 2003

By 

Dean Thomas (Downey, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hitler's SS: Portrait in Evil (DVD)

It's an interesting persprctive, looking at the SS from the points of view of two brothers: one in the SS, and one who ran afoul of the SS. The actors playing Heydrich and Himmler did their roles excellently, and the depiction of SS reaction to certain events (Night of the Long Knives, Krystalnacht, and the July 20 Bomb plot) was also well done. The only thing obviusly inaccurate was the assasaination of Heydrich (he was assasinated in Prague, not in the countryside outside the city).