Personal Response Paper
A. Brief summary
The film Triumph of will was produced by Leni Riefenstahl in the last decade to demonstrate the regime of dictatorial leadership in the Nazi community.
According to the author, the arrival of the leader, Hitler, symbolizes the presence of the most powerful being to the community who would salvage the community from oppressors. As a result, the public draws close to watch and listen to the military guard of honor that welcomes the leader through matching accompanied by bands. Based on the content of the documentary movie, the producer uses propaganda to unite the German natives in fighting for their freedom. Leni deploys propaganda to entice the viewers and listeners towards the historic moment in Germany. This essay, therefore, provides a personal response to Riefenstahl’s documentary of 1935.
B. Response
Riefenstahl succeeds in deceiving
the viewers of the magnificent nature of Hitler by tilting the position of the
image coverage. Since Hitler represented the savior from heaven, the producer
focused on his uniqueness to make the followers understand beyond doubt. The
exaggerations paint supernatural characters to the leader that would achieve
public attention. Seemingly, the formation of the new political dynasty
requires a complete conviction of the German community. The use of symbolism
portrayed in the flag of the new political stand commissioned by Hitler
demonstrates the unity of the people towards a single agenda. Therefore,
through the manipulation of scenes and focus on the multitude and the icon, a
different perspective of the viewers can be seen.
The entrance of Hitler in Nuremberg is interesting with the unleashing of gunshots to demonstrate the past and the current state of the Nazi community. Dramatically, the producer enjoins the traditional regime with the anticipated leadership linked to Hitler’s powerful characters. Through repetition, the political leader remains deeply rooted in the welfare of society. The success of Hitler, therefore, signifies the success of the entire German empire, according to the film. Undoubtedly, the theme of propaganda persists in giving exemplary characters to the portrayed leader. Moreover, the producer focuses on a specific multitude to communicate a certain message to the followers. The focus remains pivotal in convincing the audience of the possibilities of good governance from Hitler.
It is unrealistic for the author to selectively identify instances of quality leadership from Hitler’s regime without capturing bad governance. The role of Riefenstahl suffices to fix the historic mess witnessed during his crisis period. Being a former civil employee of the government, he uses propaganda to claim Hitler’s lost glory of leadership in the global picture. Viewing the film changes an individual’s background information regarding the personality and role of the leader in the German community. Through the symbol of the national unity and the presence of people in the rallies, a person believes in the democratic form of ruling deployed by Hitler. The sounds adopted at the background of the film emphasize the key events and the reaction of the crowd towards the sentiments of their leader.
Seemingly, the outstanding nature of the image coverage functions to justify the trust and love people bestowed on the leader. The captions cover the entire congregations held on different grounds with Hitler standing out as a kingpin. Notably, all the corners and crowds of the Nazi people appear conspicuous in the scenes to emphasize on a single-mission society. The solders appear well dressed when discharging their duties to the leader of the land as a sign of good health and upkeep from the authorities. I am pleased with Riefenstahl’s propaganda technique in changing an individual’s perspective on the real-time occurrences by editing the images.
It is noteworthy that the theme of propaganda was used in the film. In order to justify the statement, I observed that repetition was a technique that Riefenstahl used, like many other directors who utilize the tactic in their masterpieces. The idea that ‘Hitler is Germany and Germany is Hitler’ was used over and over in the course of the film. In addition to that, the style of filming also highlights repetition. It was a common practice to showcase large masses of individuals exhibiting praise for Hitler. Thereafter, the producer would shun from that scene and present another set only for her to return to the cheering crowds.
I was very impressed by the camerawork, which was revolutionary. Needless to say, Riefenstahl has set high standards for modern cinema works. Throughout the film, it is vivid that there are dynamic moves, for instance, when making rotational angles in an effort to facilitate various dimensions of filming. Apparently, the camera could sweep swiftly in the midst of multitudes of people and diverge to the sky to exhibit the extent to which the Nazis gathered in large numbers. Riefenstahl’s shots employed the element of perspective, for example, during the shootout of the Nazi leaders from a low point to enable them to soar above the spectators.