Video: 100 Cars of Snow: How Hitler Germany's Last Propaganda Film Was Filmed
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
In January 1945, eight months before the end of World War II, a major film premiered in Berlin. According to the idea of Joseph Goebbels, the minister of propaganda of Hitler's Germany, this film was supposed to be a call for the unification of a nation that was increasingly discouraged in light of the impending defeat of the Third Reich. Kohlberg became the most epic, most expensive Nazi propaganda film ever. And the history of its creation is literally full of both comic irony and real tragedy.
Hitler and Goebbels didn't just love movies. They considered it the most effective means of propaganda and control of the population. And of course they didn’t want to believe that Kohlberg would become a swan song in the Nazi propaganda campaign.
Kohlberg's plot was based on historical events. It was the story of Napoleon's attack on the town of Kohlberg in Pomerania in 1807. Based on the autobiography of the mayor of Kohlberg, Joachim Nettelbeck, as well as on a play written by Paul Heise, the film was supposed to inspire the German people, recalling how the heroic defenders of the city besieged by Napoleonic hordes managed to defend their homeland.
Of course, Goebbels was not at all concerned with historical accuracy. In fact, after the siege, Napoleon was able to take the city, but why mention this and "spoil" a good story. This also applies to writers. Paul Heise was a Nobel laureate, but since he was Jewish, all references to him and his play were removed from the credits.
Filming for Kohlberg began in 1943 and cost more than 8 million Reichsmarks. If we translate this into modern money, then even James Cameron would envy such a budget. Given that the winter scenes were filmed in the summer, 100 railroad cars of salt were brought from Pomerania to create “fake” snow.
Heinrich Gheorghe starred as Nettelbeck, and German screen star Christina Söderbaum, who was married to the film's director Veit Harlan, plays the role of Maria Werner. By the way, the husband and wife also worked together on the notorious anti-Semitic propaganda play "Jew Süss" (1940).
During the war, Söderbaum was given the dubious nickname "Nazi Marilyn Monroe". Already in the 1990s, the actress gave an interview in which she spoke about her relationship with Goebbels and the Fuhrer. Söderbaum said that Goebbels "had very beautiful eyes, but he was also a real devil." And Adolf Hitler always liked the actress, especially his "amazing eyes".
Kohlberg became famous for being the second largest film in history, after Gandhi (1982). Tens of thousands of real soldiers were involved in the filming, who at this time were released from service. According to Christine Söderbaum, “the actors were only too happy to take part in the filming of the film, as it meant that they did not have to go to the front.”
The set wasn't a safe place either. Constantly had to take precautions in the event of an allied attack. Two soldiers died because the staged explosion occurred prematurely. Ultimately, Goebbels' hopes for the film were dashed. Cities in Germany began shelling, razing many cinemas to the ground.
An attempt was made to raise the morale of the Nazi troops fighting in the French city of La Rochelle. Like Kohlberg, which was discussed in the film, he was under siege. Curiously, the delivery was carried out by parachute.
In 1945, the film's misfortunes continued: the Kohlberg films were captured by the Red Army. Interestingly, not long before this Goebbels, for some reason, ordered the most violent scenes from the film to be cut and destroyed. IMDB claims that actor Jaspar von Ertzen's name remained in the credits, although his character Prince Louis Ferdinand and his death scene were cut from the film.
When the war ended, director Veit Harlan escaped justice by claiming that the author of his work was the Nazi regime, not himself. Harlan died in 1964, and Söderbaum outlived him much, passing away in 2001.
Screen star Heinrich Gheorghe ended his days in a Soviet POW camp in 1946. In 1995, Kohlberg first appeared on screens, half a century later. Despite its controversial nature, it is considered an important historical document.
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