Riefenstahl

if the 9 circles of hell were real, i hope her body is cut up into 9 slices because she belongs in every single one of them.

(very disorganized rant incoming)

probably within the first 12 minutes, i nearly ragequitted the documentary because leni riefenstahl, in usual fashion, was bullshitting through her teeth about how she wanted to keep her art separate from politics, or something (i basically tuned her out).

for the fascist diaper-wipers (rn, im looking at you berlinale festival), art IS political. politics is not just how you vote or the government in general; it is the systems that surround you, the codes and legacies that persist in society that influence your outcome beyond your personal responsibility. being queer is political, being a person of color is political, being an immigrant is political, and so forth. your mere existence is political. art is created from what you have seen, experienced, and felt in life from the effects of those politics. art is fueled by the fire in your veins when you move through the very life influenced by politics. art can be a cause or response to politics, a revolution or propaganda. art is everything to politics, but the antithesis. you know what actually is the antithesis, but also technically impossible because art is inherently political? being apolitical!!!!

if you want to whine about everything being too political as an artist or how you want nothing to do with politics, then like leni, what you are is a coward who refuses to acknowledge that you have benefitted from the very systems that have historically oppressed others. riding the fence is how you enable bigotry, discrimination, and worst of all, dehumanization and utmost cruelty. how can you still believe in yourself when you say you are apolitical and then turn a blind eye to the holocausts of today? the blatant evidence of palestinians getting genocided by israel, the stories of innocent civilians being unlawfully arrested and detained in inhumane conditions at ice facilities, etc.?

if the 9 circles of hell were real, i hope her body is cut up into 9 slices because she belongs in every single one of them.

(very disorganized rant incoming)

probably within the first 12 minutes, i nearly ragequitted the documentary because leni riefenstahl, in usual fashion, was bullshitting through her teeth about how she wanted to keep her art separate from politics, or something (i basically tuned her out).

for the fascist diaper-wipers (rn, im looking at you berlinale festival), art IS political. politics is not just how you vote or the government in general; it is the systems that surround you, the codes and legacies that persist in society that influence your outcome beyond your personal responsibility. being queer is political, being a person of color is political, being an immigrant is political, and so forth. your mere existence is political. art is created from what you have seen, experienced, and felt in life from the effects of those politics. art is fueled by the fire in your veins when you move through the very life influenced by politics. art can be a cause or response to politics, a revolution or propaganda. art is everything to politics, but the antithesis. you know what actually is the antithesis, but also technically impossible because art is inherently political? being apolitical!!!!

if you want to whine about everything being too political as an artist or how you want nothing to do with politics, then like leni, what you are is a coward who refuses to acknowledge that you have benefitted from the very systems that have historically oppressed others. riding the fence is how you enable bigotry, discrimination, and worst of all, dehumanization and utmost cruelty. how can you still believe in yourself when you say you are apolitical and then turn a blind eye to the holocausts of today? the blatant evidence of palestinians getting genocided by israel, the stories of innocent civilians being unlawfully arrested and detained in inhumane conditions at ice facilities, etc.?

The most polarizing point about this documentary is how Nazi Germany platformed a woman in the 1930s to lead the charge on fascist media propaganda. She was a Nazi piece of shit, no need to elaborate. And how she asserted herself into that position by buddying up with Hitler. “Riefenstahl” is peak investigative journalism, and gives credence to those who tactfully deploy their resources. Unearthing a personal archive that, very staunchly, proves Leni was a liar all the way to her grave about her relationship with Hitler, and knowledge of the Holocaust. This is the equivalent of a lawyer presenting their case with irrefutable evidence that you cannot separate this artist’s art from their personal politics. It is not in chronological order and doesn’t need to be because this is a dissection and full-on demolition of her character. Backbreaking. She was truly an ignoble person. In the times we live in today, it is important to see what this type of messaging looks like, how the strings are pulled, and how to stop it.

The most polarizing point about this documentary is how Nazi Germany platformed a woman in the 1930s to lead the charge on fascist media propaganda. She was a Nazi piece of shit, no need to elaborate. And how she asserted herself into that position by buddying up with Hitler. “Riefenstahl” is peak investigative journalism, and gives credence to those who tactfully deploy their resources. Unearthing a personal archive that, very staunchly, proves Leni was a liar all the way to her grave about her relationship with Hitler, and knowledge of the Holocaust. This is the equivalent of a lawyer presenting their case with irrefutable evidence that you cannot separate this artist’s art from their personal politics. It is not in chronological order and doesn’t need to be because this is a dissection and full-on demolition of her character. Backbreaking. She was truly an ignoble person. In the times we live in today, it is important to see what this type of messaging looks like, how the strings are pulled, and how to stop it.

very interesting and haunting or scary but i kept feeling like it could have been more so by going deeper or speeding up the pacing or something. or more of a throughline. or chronology.

very interesting and haunting or scary but i kept feeling like it could have been more so by going deeper or speeding up the pacing or something. or more of a throughline. or chronology.

always a breath of fresh air to see a documentary that isn’t just a bunch of talking heads. letting riefenstahl speak to us in her own words helps form a compelling narrative that is further elevated by the film’s unique structure. instead of a linear narrative we go back and forth between the late 20th century and the height of the third reich. she claims that her films were apolitical but the films’ images betray her. by jumping through time this film paints a psychological portrait that through its minimal use of narration allows for ambiguity while still being critical of its subject.

always a breath of fresh air to see a documentary that isn’t just a bunch of talking heads. letting riefenstahl speak to us in her own words helps form a compelling narrative that is further elevated by the film’s unique structure. instead of a linear narrative we go back and forth between the late 20th century and the height of the third reich. she claims that her films were apolitical but the films’ images betray her. by jumping through time this film paints a psychological portrait that through its minimal use of narration allows for ambiguity while still being critical of its subject.

Me ha encantado profundizar en la mente de Leni Riefenstahl gracias a este documental. Ver cómo se autopercibe después de ser una propagandista del régimen nazi y cómo trata de desvincularse del mismo es hipnotizante (muchas veces gracias a su propia obra que es visualmente espectacular). Sobre todo porque se hace una buena labor de contraponer sus declaraciones con pruebas de sus constantes mentiras.
¿Puede ser que tras la caída del Tercer Reich Riefenstahl se diera cuenta de lo que había promocionado con su arte y decidiera despegarse lo máximo posible más o menos de buena fe? Es posible pero claramente "olvida" o niega lo que le viene mal para su imagen. Tanto que hace pensar exactamente lo contrario y que es una rata nazi más protegiendo su integridad ante un mundo que necesita justicia.
Un gran documental (con un montaje que quizá podría haberse afinado más) que llega en un momento muy apropiado, seguro que a día de hoy aún la llamarían para apoyarle e incluso decirle que eso de los campos de concentración nazis son mentiras de la élite global.

Me ha encantado profundizar en la mente de Leni Riefenstahl gracias a este documental. Ver cómo se autopercibe después de ser una propagandista del régimen nazi y cómo trata de desvincularse del mismo es hipnotizante (muchas veces gracias a su propia obra que es visualmente espectacular). Sobre todo porque se hace una buena labor de contraponer sus declaraciones con pruebas de sus constantes mentiras.
¿Puede ser que tras la caída del Tercer Reich Riefenstahl se diera cuenta de lo que había promocionado con su arte y decidiera despegarse lo máximo posible más o menos de buena fe? Es posible pero claramente "olvida" o niega lo que le viene mal para su imagen. Tanto que hace pensar exactamente lo contrario y que es una rata nazi más protegiendo su integridad ante un mundo que necesita justicia.
Un gran documental (con un montaje que quizá podría haberse afinado más) que llega en un momento muy apropiado, seguro que a día de hoy aún la llamarían para apoyarle e incluso decirle que eso de los campos de concentración nazis son mentiras de la élite global.