Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de) "Das Goebbels-Experiment" or "The Goebbels Experiment" is a collaboration between Germany and Great Britain and this film was made back in 2005, so it had its 10th anniversary last year. This exists with English and German narration and depending which version you watch, you will hear either Kenneth Branagh or Udo Samel. The writer and director is Lutz Hachmeister and these 105 minutes are probably his most known work to-date. The title already says what it is about, namely Joseph Goebbels, one of the big names inevitable linked to Nazi Germany as he was Hitler's most loyal aide and follower and he even went with him into death on his own will.The film and the narration I mentioned previously consists basically entirely of writing from Goebbels himself. This certainly makes a difference here as such proximity to the subject is something you don't get in every documentary movie. It is his words. We find out a whole lot about him, his relationships with politicians like Hitler and Göhring for example, but also for example about how he saw Leni Riefenstahl. There's also many personal parts in here, for example we get to know how he crushed on his future wife Magda immediately and I was a bit surprised his children weren't really part of these recordings or maybe they just weren't included, which is kinda sad looking at how many he had if they really meant so little to him.All in all, it was a pretty good effort I would say. I learned something I have not yet known on some occasions here and I think the films makes an impact and does not belong to the gray mass of Nazi-themed documentaries who basically all tell exactly the same. I would not say it is a must-see, but it is probably a good watch for everybody with an interest in German history of the 20th century. Also it dragged almost never, which is always a decent achievement for a film that runs for over 100 minutes. Thumbs-up from me. Go see it.

Kenneth McGrath Directed by Lutz Hachmeister and narrated by Kenneth Branagh, this is such a direct and accessible series of insights into the psychopathy of Hitler's propagandist. I found it amazing to see just how narcissistic and arrogant this Goebbels really was and now naively he felt superior to others, despite the very clear limitations of his intellect. It's as if he had almost no interpersonal, nor intrapersonal intelligence whatsoever. How tragic when we see, throughout history, these men who think their grand schemes of globalism and corporate fascism, will amount to anything more than social oppression, violence, and destruction.Carl Jung often mentioned this "idée fixe" as basis of neurotic dysfunction, the disintegration of human morality and concern for "others as self" in the interest of egomaniac self-preoccupation. Goebbels was not only the architect of the Holocaust, he embodied the male, monomania of racial superiority that clearly was driven by his early failures in the banking industry and his rejection by childhood peers related to the deformity of his paralysed leg. How tragic that such weakness becomes so much self-hatred served upon millions of other, innocent people.This film depicted a truth that felt like reportage. I found that it worked extremely well as my understanding of the subject was both deepened and broadened. The production quality was excellent.

Aaron Whitehead Everyone once in a while a film comes along that people need to see. This is especially true concerning events of global consequence, Nazi Germany most specifically. And while films such as Schindler's List are invaluable in personalizing the tragedy of millions, they are emotionally based, as they should be. But what "The Goebbels Experiment" does is that it makes us think about why and how one man (and so many others) could come to bring about and participate in atrocities. The film doesn't talk much about the nature of the propaganda itself -- it's not a legit documentary about Goebbels, but a strict series of readings from his diaries -- but to hear Goebbels talking, we can hear echoes of the terrible propagandists that have brought about so much disaster in the years since. There is much to be learned from this film, particularly in seeing up close what could make a human being into a monster. It happens easier and more often than you'd think, and this film, while sometimes a bit dull and one-dimensional, does accomplish that purpose. You don't have to be an expert on World War II or Nazi Germany to appreciate the film, but it does help provide contextual understanding. I think this is a worthwhile film along the lines of any film about the Third Reich; the lessons must be learned, and the intervening years have proved just how much we have failed to learn them.

ralphsf I was really hoping this film would give some real insight to the life of a very complex and horrible person. Unfortunately, it is, for the most part, a chronological retelling of events. It tells you little about his early life, his switch from socialist to Nazi, next to nothing about his joining and rise in the Nazi party, his reaction to events like the Putsch, the Battle of Britain, Stalingrad, the assassination attempt on Hitler. It gives no information about the making of films like "the Eternal Jew" or any of the inner workings at UFA studios. It does show his dislike of Reifenstahl and then, subsequent fawning over her when giving an award, but the commentary is very limited.I understand they wanted to limit it to his diary entries but they just aren't enough to give a full perspective on Goebbels. No mention is made of his families' and his deaths (portrayed so well in "Downfall") and nothing of his life in the bunker. Too many gaps, way too much left out. There are some interesting comments about his mistrust and jealousies with Himmler and Goering, but all stuff that has been well reported elsewhere. Some of the footage is interesting including pieces I haven't seen before, but really not much that is of an informal nature. If you're hoping to gain more perspective on why someone would do what he did, or even the inner workings of Nazi Germany, sadly you might as well skip this film.