The Closing Film of the 43rd edition of the Torino Film Festival Nuremberg brought to the silver screen a story that explores the familiarisation with the enemy.
Film director James Vanderbilt portrays the Allied trials of the 1940s, following the fall of the Nazi regime. American psychiatrist Douglas Kelly (Rami Malek) is assigned to evaluate the mental state of Nazi prisoners and determine their fitness to stand trial for war crimes. This task gets him to a more thorough understanding of the psychology of Hermann Göring (Russell Crowe) — Hitler’s right-hand man and one of the most feared figures of the era. When the time arrives for the Nuremberg trials, two determining figures will be the lead prosecutor of the United States Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson (Michael Shannon) and the British lead prosecutor Sir David Maxwell Fyfe (Richard E. Grant). An emblematic character that will further provide an insightful perception of the persecutions against the Jews is Sergeant Howie Triest (Leo Woodall), Kelly’s aide and German-English interpreter.
The fascinating angle of Nuremberg is the psychological duel between the shrink and the villain. For the making of this historical drama, director James Vanderbilt was inspired by the 2013 book The Nazi and the Psychiatrist by Jack El-Hai. The psychological thriller element builds up rather slowly. We observe how Doctor Kelly almost seems to befriend Göring and ultimately has an awakening, when he watches footage of the horrors inflicted by the Nazis to the prisoners in the concentrations camps. This courtroom scene is approached with reverential somberness, shifting from the psychological thriller to a profound divulgation of harrowing evidence. Audiences will be disturbed by this testament of violence, but Vanderbilt’s choice to include these images is praiseworthy, to serve as a general reminder of the brutality mankind can perpetrate in the name of a conviction.
Russell Crowe’s monumental performance and mastery of German is thought-provoking. He is not a caricature of evil, but a human being who is adamant in his position and can intellectually seduce a clever interlocutor like Kelley. Rami Malek is effective in his daedal depiction of the Army psychiatrist, who for an instant seems to have an empathetic connection with his despicable patient. The rest of the cast members are fit for the roles they play, but the script seems to lack something to make it compelling, other than the important moment in time it chronicles. For instance, this chapter in history had previously been portrayed extensively by the 2000 Canadian-American television docudrama in two parts, based on the book Nuremberg: Infamy on Trial by Joseph E. Persico.
Nevertheless this film will serve as an enlightening tool for younger generations to brush up on their history, and reflect on the warlords of our time whilst observing those of the past. The filmmaker appropriately described his motion picture as an exploration of “the fragile boundary between justice and vengeance in the aftermath of unimaginable atrocity. As we approach the 80th anniversary of this unprecedented moment in history, this story feels more urgent than ever, and I can’t wait for audiences to see it on the big screen.”
James Vanderbuilt, has a vast experience as producer and writer and returns behind the camera 10 years after his 2015 Truth, starring Robert Redford, Cate Blanchett and Dennis Quaid. In that film he showed how investigative journalists were grappling with the coverage of President George W. Bush’s military service, and subsequent firestorm of criticism that cost anchor Dan Rather and producer Mary Mapes their careers. With Nuremberg the American filmmaker returns to a story that questions the ferocious deeds of those in power. James Vanderbuilt with his latest work delivers an important message for mankind.
Final Grade: B
Photos Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics