Day of Freedom (1935)

Best movie of this year hands down!

Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

A Masterpiece!

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

This is a movie that is 80 years old already. To put it in perspective, this was done 2 years after Hitler's rise to power, 1 year before the Olympics in Berlin and 4 years before World War II. It is a black-and-white movie that runs for slightly under half an hour and, for the most part, shows us the German armed forces in (fake) combat action and during parades. Of course, during these parades all the high-rank Nazi politicians are there as well, not just Hitler himself.It is not a particularly interesting movie to watch, really only significant to see how things were back then from a documentary perspective. Quality is fairly low, even for the 1930s. The film's director is centenarian Leni Riefenstahl, who did some more Nazi propaganda movies, such as the infamous "Triumph of the Will". There is quite some irony between the music and the scenes depicted. Especially the whistling parts make it seem fairly ridiculous at times. All in all, only worth a watch for those with a deep interest in German history of the 20th century.

Tag der Freiheit - Unsere Wehrmacht (1935) *** (out of 4)When Leni Riefenstahl made TRIUMPH OF THE WILL, apparently Adolf Hitler felt that it didn't show off the German Army enough so this short was made. This here was meant to show off how strong the German Army was but of course what happened over the next several years has tainted the film and even Riefenstahl's legacy.There's no question that this here is a visual masterpiece, although it's certainly not on the same level as TRIUMPH OF THE WILL. With that being said, I think this film is a lot more entertaining to watch since it's just 17-minutes. What we've basically got here are clips of the German soldiers doing their daily routine but it's the masterful camerawork that really sells the film. I really loved how Riefenstahl shot the movie with the camera down low, looking up towards people and making them appear much bigger. The way the sun is high above them beating down just added a surreal touch.Of course, it's impossible to watch this film without looking at these soldiers and wondering what horrors they committed during WWII. You can't help but think which one of them were killed in battle. Which one of them worked at the camps where millions of Jews were killed. The ugliness hangs its head all over the film.

Firstly let's put all politics aside and then we will see a splendid image of military technique from that particular epoch. This movie is of a great interest for people interested in militaria, re-constructors and such. No other documentary allows us to see how certain equipment is used in most proper way, how it works, how it is operated and so on. Just take a look on rapid deployment of PaK guns, AT crews fighting off tanks, Flak batteries in air defense role, such pictures have great learning potential. Scholars of military can learn very much about German strategies and military doctrine especially through well perpetrated maneuvers shown in this movie. Truly essential documentary for anyone interested in topic.

I saw this movie and felt the power of the German Armed Forces. It is something to think that in just 4 years, they were at war.