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.?

Much like any right wing commentator, Riefenstahl hangs herself with her own contradictions. The film methodically dismantles decades of self-mythologizing, showing a woman obsessed with controlling her image while mourning her "murdered ideals" in private and claiming ignorance in public, classic right-wing behaviour.

Much like any right wing commentator, Riefenstahl hangs herself with her own contradictions. The film methodically dismantles decades of self-mythologizing, showing a woman obsessed with controlling her image while mourning her "murdered ideals" in private and claiming ignorance in public, classic right-wing behaviour.

sinceramente non credo di essere in grado di fare un voto ad un'opera del genere, quindi mi limiterò a loggarla e dire la mia più sincera opinione.

Un film molto chiaro nei suoi intenti di spiegazione e di approfondimento sulla figura di Leni (cognome). Una persona che si rivela controversa sin dai primi istanti, che appare come una manipolatrice subdola, capace di fare tutto e negare tutto. Vive sulle cose non dette e su quello che si può interpretare dai suoi lavori, annunciandosi come pro agli ebrei perché non ha mai detto davvero niente di così tanto contro. Si annuncia poi come non razzista, e quasi contro Hitler.

Tutte evidenti menzogne che però le permettono di costruirsi il suo personaggio in una Germania che condanna qiello per cui ha lavorato, riuscendo a raggiungere persone e manipolarle con le sue parole, in un disperato attento di farci sentire in colpa, di darci quasi ragioni tragiche per quello cbe ha fatto. Vuole dipingersi come una donna forte e indipendente che però ahimè è solo vittima della sorte e di sfortunate coincidenze, del mondo in cui si ritrovava.


Per quanto riguarda la regia non so cosa dire in quanto (per ovvi motivi per carità), le inquadrature non sono state gestite dal regista, che invece ha solo fatto un lavoro di assemblaggio e scelta di cosa integrare e cosa togliere.

sinceramente non credo di essere in grado di fare un voto ad un'opera del genere, quindi mi limiterò a loggarla e dire la mia più sincera opinione.

Un film molto chiaro nei suoi intenti di spiegazione e di approfondimento sulla figura di Leni (cognome). Una persona che si rivela controversa sin dai primi istanti, che appare come una manipolatrice subdola, capace di fare tutto e negare tutto. Vive sulle cose non dette e su quello che si può interpretare dai suoi lavori, annunciandosi come pro agli ebrei perché non ha mai detto davvero niente di così tanto contro. Si annuncia poi come non razzista, e quasi contro Hitler.

Tutte evidenti menzogne che però le permettono di costruirsi il suo personaggio in una Germania che condanna qiello per cui ha lavorato, riuscendo a raggiungere persone e manipolarle con le sue parole, in un disperato attento di farci sentire in colpa, di darci quasi ragioni tragiche per quello cbe ha fatto. Vuole dipingersi come una donna forte e indipendente che però ahimè è solo vittima della sorte e di sfortunate coincidenze, del mondo in cui si ritrovava.


Per quanto riguarda la regia non so cosa dire in quanto (per ovvi motivi per carità), le inquadrature non sono state gestite dal regista, che invece ha solo fatto un lavoro di assemblaggio e scelta di cosa integrare e cosa togliere.

I admittedly took a mondo dookie halfway through watching it.

I admittedly took a mondo dookie halfway through watching it.

Leni Riefenstahl, at one point in time recognized as a revolutionary director with a masterful grasp on the technical aspects of film, is now remembered as the most recognizable face of the audacious and glib “how could we have known?” defense.

And frankly? It’s what she deserves, and she has no one to blame but herself. 

This documentary finally puts to rest the very little doubt around her complacency around the Nazi regime, pairing clips of her trying to convince the world that she must be the dumbest woman to have ever lived and somehow she hadn’t the slightest idea of the Nazi atrocities with extensive documentation from her own archives proving otherwise. At one moment we see her claim nothing “political” was said, that there was no antisemitism, before immediately cutting to footage of Hitler at that exact event spouting antisemitic drivel.

While any film regarding the horrors of WW2 and the Holocaust will cause unease in any sane individual, I was especially caught off guard by how smug Riefenstahl comes across at times. Her expressions during interviews whenever someone begins to discuss Nazi war crimes are at best dismissive. Shocking as well is just how much Riefenstahl complains. For a woman who made propaganda films for Hitler, buddied up to him and several other high ranking Nazi officials, as well as marrying a Major in the Nazi military, and yet faced no consequences beyond a lifetime ban from holding public office, getting to live a comfortable life for nearly 6 more decades and passing away peacefully of natural causes at 101 years old, you would think any remotely sane individual would recognize the relative luck of their situation. Not Riefenstahl though. Wether it’s bemoaning “hatchet job” newspaper profiles, whining that no one wants to discuss her narrative features instead of the Propaganda she produced for the Third Reich, or complaining that no one wants to work with her, she always finds something to gripe about.

After all this, it’s blatantly clear she was aware of the atrocities committed by the Nazi Regime, and she was at best an opportunist willing to do anything to secure funding, and at worst a full fledged supporter of the Genocide surrounding her.

On a final note, when it comes time for our current public figures and filmmakers to face the music regarding the horrors in both Palestine and the ongoing nightmare of Donald Trump’s 2nd presidency, I can only hope we don’t fall for “we didn’t know” and “I was blind to only see the good” again.

Leni Riefenstahl, at one point in time recognized as a revolutionary director with a masterful grasp on the technical aspects of film, is now remembered as the most recognizable face of the audacious and glib “how could we have known?” defense.

And frankly? It’s what she deserves, and she has no one to blame but herself. 

This documentary finally puts to rest the very little doubt around her complacency around the Nazi regime, pairing clips of her trying to convince the world that she must be the dumbest woman to have ever lived and somehow she hadn’t the slightest idea of the Nazi atrocities with extensive documentation from her own archives proving otherwise. At one moment we see her claim nothing “political” was said, that there was no antisemitism, before immediately cutting to footage of Hitler at that exact event spouting antisemitic drivel.

While any film regarding the horrors of WW2 and the Holocaust will cause unease in any sane individual, I was especially caught off guard by how smug Riefenstahl comes across at times. Her expressions during interviews whenever someone begins to discuss Nazi war crimes are at best dismissive. Shocking as well is just how much Riefenstahl complains. For a woman who made propaganda films for Hitler, buddied up to him and several other high ranking Nazi officials, as well as marrying a Major in the Nazi military, and yet faced no consequences beyond a lifetime ban from holding public office, getting to live a comfortable life for nearly 6 more decades and passing away peacefully of natural causes at 101 years old, you would think any remotely sane individual would recognize the relative luck of their situation. Not Riefenstahl though. Wether it’s bemoaning “hatchet job” newspaper profiles, whining that no one wants to discuss her narrative features instead of the Propaganda she produced for the Third Reich, or complaining that no one wants to work with her, she always finds something to gripe about.

After all this, it’s blatantly clear she was aware of the atrocities committed by the Nazi Regime, and she was at best an opportunist willing to do anything to secure funding, and at worst a full fledged supporter of the Genocide surrounding her.

On a final note, when it comes time for our current public figures and filmmakers to face the music regarding the horrors in both Palestine and the ongoing nightmare of Donald Trump’s 2nd presidency, I can only hope we don’t fall for “we didn’t know” and “I was blind to only see the good” again.