Customer Reviews

Mother Night

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Throughout his acting career, Nick Nolte has never particularly inspired my admiration. Until MOTHER NIGHT, that is.

In a film adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut's novel of the same title, Howard Campbell is an American playwright who grows to manhood in Germany before World War II. He marries Helga, a German actress. During the war, he elects to broadcast anti-Semitic speeches for the Reich Propaganda Ministry. Unknown to his Nazi bosses, he was recruited as an agent by the U.S. Defense Department shortly before the outbreak of the conflict, and Howard's radio sermons pass along coded messages to the Allies. Only three other Americans know of his role: his mysterious recruiter Frank (John Goodman), FDR, and the head of the OSS. Frank tells Campbell that the American government will eternally disavow his heroic actions as the Soviets would twist the story into some sort of anticommunist German-American plot.

By the war's end, Helga is dead. (Or is she?) Campbell is captured by the U.S. Third Army, but then released, apparently on the intercession of Frank, who also manages to spirit him to New York to restart his life. After 15 years living there unnoticed, Howard's role as Hitler's tame American is revealed to the public by an admiring neo-Nazi organization. Both the Israelis and Soviets clamor for his repatriation to stand trial.

MOTHER NIGHT plays more like a live stage production. It begins with Campbell being escorted to an Israeli prison to the song of Bing Crosby's "White Christmas". The film is a series of long flashbacks. At one point, Howard observes in a voice-over to the viewer that one must be careful what one pretends to be for that is what one truly becomes. Although MOTHER NIGHT has been criticized for its lack of a message, I rather believe that it's that an individual must in the end take responsibility for his/her actions in life regardless of the role, real or pretend, that's been played. For Campbell, realization of the consequences to humanity of his wartime persona comes at three widely separated points. The first, as the Red Army drives on Berlin's outskirts, Howard's father-in-law, the Chief of Police, tells Campbell that even though he (the Chief) suspected his son-in-law of being a spy, he now realizes that Howard served the Reich more than he might have ever served the enemy. Why? Because Campbell, with his broadcasts, made the Chief (and presumably other Germans) better Nazis. The second point comes in New York as Campbell views archival footage of one of his more rabid diatribes. And the last, in the Israeli prison, when Howard has a stunning insight during a conversation with Adolf Eichmann regarding the amount of self-credit the latter takes (or not) for the annihilation of 6 million Jews.

I can't give MOTHER NIGHT five stars for the simple reason that the neo-Nazis that Campbell eventually meets in New York are rendered as almost comic characters whose racist views don't come across as menacing as they truly are. Had they been portrayed with more seriousness, the overall impact of the film would have been, I think, greatly enhanced. Nevertheless, MOTHER NIGHT is well worth viewing.

So far there have been three movies made from Kurt Vonnegut works. "Slaughtehouse Five", "Mother Night", and "Harrison Burgeron." "Harrison Burgeron" was really an amalgam of numerous Vonnegut themes and ideas, but based on the very short story of the same name. "Slaughterhouse Five" required that you read the book to get a full appreciation of the story in the film. "Mother Night" followed the book by the same title with precision, clarity and intensity.

Wonderfully cast and acted, this is a dark tale of cause and effect on people's lives. To paraphrase the moral of the book "be careful what you pretend to be."

Nolte is perfect as the lead with surprising and excellent roles by Arkin, Sheryl Lee, and John Goodman. If you are a Vonnegut fan you will not be disappointed with this interpretation of his book.

This is the best adaptation of a Vonnegut novel to film yet. I would even say that the movie had more of an impact on me than the book.

Howard Campbell, Jr., "The Last Free American," is an allied spy who broadcasts Nazi propaganda from Berlin during WWII, but his copy has been marked up by Allied intelligence in such a way that coughs, pauses, emphasis in his delivery are sending out intelligence to the west. The question is should he be condemned for who he is pretending to be and for the overt message of hate that he sends out on the airwave; or should he be absolved because his covert (unconscious) communication is providing vital information to the Allies and thereby freeing concentration camp prisoners and defeating the Nazis?

Campbell is a character who really doesn't know what he's saying. He spews hate and believes he is sending out useful hidden information, but he can't be sure. He doesn't believe in the propaganda -- it's a useful cover for speaking the deeper truths in a society that will only hear what it can hear. Ironies and ambiguities compound on one another until Campbell loses sight of who he is or where he belongs or where he can go. He comes to a dead stop. He has no reason to move in any direction.

Vonnegut is a moral writer -- funny, but moral. There is a small bit of humor here, e.g. an African-American Nazi! Irony taken to absurdity. And as a GE-brat myself, I can always count on Vonnegut to work GE (Schenectady in particular -- his old employer)into the storyline somewhere.

The moral of this story seems to be two: "You must be careful what you pretend to be, because in the end, you are who you pretend to be." On this basis, Campbell would be condemned. And so he is. The other bon mot of note is from Alan Arkin's character -- a painter friend of Campbell's who turns out to be a Russian spy -- who says, "Maybe art is the one thing you can't fake." But of course art is faking it -- art is making it up, telling the lie that reveals the deeper truth (Picasso). In the end Howard Campbell because the charcter of his fiction and as the creator and writer of that man's tale, is able to pass judgement on his character. The end of Campbell is of a piece with his life.

Nick Nolte, Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Sheryl Lee all turn in great performances.

Its a terrific literary film. Highly recommended.

There is something to be said for Kurt Vonnegut's work. His novels are indescribable masterpieces that can seemingly only exist in the mind and never on screen. But, what if he helped direct the movie?

Vonnegut's role in the making of "Mother Night" was surely instrumental in its success as a piece of cinematic brilliance. Nolte and Company certainly put on exceptional performances and they cannot be overlooked, either. However, the story is where the meat of the matter lies and it is laid out beautifully in front of us.

What is more important is, having read the book, it is 99% line for line translated to the screen. I am tempted to say that if you watch the movie, you will have read the book, it's that close. Still, I highly recommend both book and movie, though the latter is what I am writing on today.

It makes one pine for Kurt to work with more Hollywood directors in making his works shine in a different medium. This is one of his few pieces, though, that is easily leant to cinema. Thank goodness it was done right. A must see!

This is the story in which Kurt Vonnegurt tackles the heavy topic of a fictional character:- an American Nazi Collabotator, at least partially based on the true-life examples of 'Axis Sally' and Lord Haw Haw, American/British collaborator who worked for the Reich Broadcast Service and beaming out anti-Allies propaganda in WWII. A dangerous and difficult topic at best of times, an explosive one if it is not handled well. But the director pulls it off with great skill, sensitivity and panache with this adaptation, blending the tension of war, personal tragedy, picaresque twists of fate and "X-files" like paranoid conspiracy theory. A remarkably keen-eye and un-preachy treatment of the issue of Nazi collaborator and their subsequent lives living incognito amidst their arch-enemy, America. The director wisely avoided moralising, crude evil/good comparisons, and cut-out stereotyping of Nazis as ogres or monsters, but instead produced a thought-provoking & sensitive account of the picaresque twists of fates endured by the lead character, an American Nazi Collabotator who married the daughter of the Chief of Police of Nazi Berlin. If you are interested you may also wish to try 'Apt Pupil' (DVD also available on Amazon.Com), which is a uniquely insightful & tautly directed psychology thriller about an aged SS officer living under an assumed identity in idyllic American suburbia, whose true identity was discovered by a teenager and who was subsequently 'blackmailed' into telling the youth his true-life experience as a death camp commandant in Poland

This is a wonderful film for a variety of reasons. First of all, it touts a remarkably well adapted screenplay, probably because the novel of the same name is one of Vonnegut's most conventional works. Both the book and the film are wonderful, and I do not mean to discredit either. From what I have seen, most people coming into this film expect to see a WWII spy thriller. I cannot stress more how I disagree with this assumption, however. It is instead at heart a love story, detailing the love between two characters and how the machinations of the world and a war strive to destroy what they have. It also examines the question "Do your beliefs or your actions determine who you are". This film features excellent performances by both Nolte and Lee, but I think Sheryl Lee is the true standout. She delivers an emotional raw performance, proving she is an actress who has not received the serious attention she deserves. Suitable for a variety of palates, I would reccomend this film to anyone.

I first saw this movie while browsing through the movie channels. It is now one of my favorites. Nick Nolte, Sheryl Lee, John Goodman, and Alan Arkin all put in terrific performances. This movie, like most based on Vonnegut novels, is filled with drama, dark humor, suspense, and mystery. I highly recommend this film. It has terrific acting, an excellent plot, and its just a darn good film. I also recommend the book of the same name by Vonnegut. The film's plot stays very close to the book so if you like the movie you'll like the book or vice versa.

This movie captured the essence of the novel in such a way that i really believed the actors read it. This is not typical of movies based on books. I truly believe that those involved with the production of this film were concerned with the ideas and intentions of the author.

This 1996 film, starring Nick Nolte, is based on a 1961 novel by Kurt Vonnegut. Knowing the author's work, we can expect a few satirical scenes and this is what is both the strength and the weakness of the adaptation by John Gordon. The opening segment is in black and white and is set in an Israeli prison in the 1960s. Nolte has just been arrested for war crimes. He is put in a cell and told to write his memoirs. He is given a manual typewriter and a ream of paper. He begins to type.

Now we switch to color and we see Nolte's story. He's an American living in Germany in the 1930s. He's a successful playwright and is married to a famous German actress who he loves dearly. When John Goodman, an American agent asks him to spy for the Americans, Nolte accepts the challenge. It's a very unique challenge too. Nolte is to write anti-Semitic [news articles] and broadcast them over public radio, in English, to be heard around the world. However, every time he coughs or pauses or clears his throat, it's really a coded message to the Americans. The Germans love him and he holds a high status. At the end of the war, there is nothing but devastation for him.

At this point John Goodman returns and tells him the Americans will never acknowledge his work but they will bring him to America to get lost in the crowd. He now moves to Greenwich Village, and this is where the story goes a little out of control. Alan Arkin is cast as his neighbor. And his role is a mystery. There's also a neo-Nazi organization, which is so comical that I had to laugh out loud. And a silly story whereby a beautiful woman who might or might not be his former wife, comes into his life.

The story was interesting and moved quickly. But it was clearly just fiction, and sometimes taken to such extremes as to be silly. Nolte is one of the finest actors around and his acting is terrific. The role calls for him to not be really patriotic towards either of the regimes. He chose to do what he did because of a personal adventure. And therefore is not a sympathetic character. It's a film designed to be clever rather than one that pulls at your heartstrings in spite of the interesting theme. And it's done well.

The DVD has an interview with Nolte and Vonnegut during the filming. It didn't add much to my appreciation of the film, but its nice to see the work in progress. "Mother Night" is clearly a showcase for Vonnegut's talent and a good role for Nolte. I do recommend it but don't expect to be moved or enlightened.

We are what we pretend to be to everyone but ourselves, aren't we? That is one of the recurring themes in the film adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut's novel Mother Night. This film pushes at a person's psyche, causing one to think on several different levels. The underlying themes are what make the major impact in this film and can be applied to anything as well as the themes' cloak, World War II. Armed with Vonnegut's caustic humour and subtle irony, the filmmakers created a weave of themes for the watcher to unravel; themes ranging from a person's existence to ignorance.

The movie's opening sequence is enough to reveal to the watcher that this movie will be rife with ironic occurrences. The sequence begins with a black and white depiction of the Israeli flag while Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" plays over the scene of guards escorting an elderly Howard W. Campbell to his cell. There he is instructed to write his memoirs.

We are taken back to when Campbell was an American child in Germany, and from that point he grows into a promising playwright. He become a sort of golden boy in the German stage circuit. He is later recruited into the American spy world and becomes one of America`s most effective agents. Each week, Campbell broadcasts a fiery speech about Nazi ideals. These speeches are heard throughout the world, causing most people to hate Howard W. Campbell, Jr., while the Nazis idolize him.

The catch with Campbell's speeches where the coded messages inside of the words. Campbell would write his speech then send it to his "editors". These people would then send it back with notes on when to pause, cough, clear his throat, and other such gestures. These breaks where relayed over the radios and to America, where someone interpreted the signals.

Here is where Campbell`s dilemmas begin and here is where the themes of this movie are introduced.

"You are what you pretend to be" is the most significant of these themes. We are what other people believe us to be. With the exception of four people, Campbell included, no one knew that Campbell was actually a spy relaying messages to the Americans. In his eyes, Howard W. Campbell, Jr., was a good man. To the rest of the world, Howard W. Campbell, Jr., was a good nazi. His weekly speeches stirred the passions of German citizens. The speeches struck the citizens' emotions, causing the people to stand stronger and fight longer for their worthy cause.

I found another theme inside of this film, one that struck me as most disturbing. The theme of the danger of ignorance. When Campbell is in Germany, there is true, unabashed hatred for those who were not German. Nazis actually hunted down these people and murdered them, because the Nazis just knew that those people where the scum of the earth. Later on when Campbell is living in New York City and the white supremacists find his address, they offer what most people write off as simple comic relief. The dentist turned reverend studied the jaw lines of paintings of Jesus. His conclusion was that Jesus was not a Jew because he had no Jewish jaw line. The reverend wrote a book on just that subject. The willing death of Mr. Krapptaur at the feet of Campbell, his idol, was strange and sudden. These actions seemed to be much more than a simple farce to me. It was like some twilight zone. The actions made me wonder if those men actually understood the consequences of what they were doing. Those men should have been taken to the death camps to see with their own eyes what their immature hatred was capable of destroying. Would they then bow before Howard W. Campbell, Jr.?

So the circle of the movie goes on, the plot running into and over itself, weaving over holes and through history. Themes that apply to a world now as well as a world when Vonnegut concocted this novel, and themes that will always apply to this unending circle of history. The difference between how you see yourself and how others see you is outlined in this film as well as the factor ignorance plays in our lives. Mother Night is a movie for someone who appreciates irony, and it is a movie for someone who is not afraid to be confronted with the truth that you are what you pretend to be.